Vladimir Rousseff (give or take an “s”) allegedly tried his hand at many careers — waiter, dishwasher, soda jerk, store clerk, peddler, factory worker, and more — while saving money to study art. Eventually, he succeeded and enrolled at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and later taught art himself.
Rouseff made four post office murals: Lincoln as Postmaster in New Salem (Salem, Illinois), Historic Treatment of Mail Transportation in the West (Iron Mountain, Michigan), Tobacco Harvest (Edgerton, Wisconsin), and A. Grignon Trading with the Indians (Kaukauna, Wisconsin).