The Arts of Life in America: Unemployment, Radical Protest, Speed
Artist
Thomas Hart Benton
(American, 1889-1975)
CultureAmerican
Date1932
MediumTempera on board
DimensionsOverall, Frame: 32 1/4 x 176 3/8 in. (81.9 x 448 cm)
32 x 176 1/2 in. (81.3 x 448.3 cm)
32 x 176 1/2 in. (81.3 x 448.3 cm)
Credit LineGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.
Object number71.2011
Collections
On View
Chrysler Museum of Art, Gallery 221
Label TextThomas Hart Benton American, 1889–1975 The Arts of Life in America: Unemployment, Radical Protest, Speed, 1932 Tempera on board Modern America is a fast-paced world in Thomas Hart Benton’s mural, one of eight panels originally decorating the library of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York. Cars, trains, and planes crisscross the left end of this long ceiling panel, while in the center, a rally by striking workers turns violent, capturing both the excitement and tensions of the turbulent 1930s. When the Whitney Museum moved to a new building in 1954, Benton’s murals were taken down and sold. Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 71.2011 ProvenanceWhitney Museum of American Art, New York, 1932; New York Studio School; James Graham and Sons, New York; Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.; Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. to the Chrysler Museum, 1971. Exhibition History"The Arts of Life in America," Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, N.Y., December 6 - 13, 1932. (Exh. cat. no. 5) "Three Hundred Years of American Art in the Chrysler Museum," Chrysler Museum at Norfolk, Va., March 1 - July 4, 1976. "Veronese to Franz Kline: Masterworks from the Chrysler Museum at Norfolk," for the benefit of The Chrysler Museum Art Reference Library, Wildenstein & Co., New York, N.Y., April 13 - May 13, 1978. (Exh. cat. no. 40) "Behind the Seen: The Chrysler's Hidden Museum," Large Changing Gallery, Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Va., October 21, 2005 - February 19, 2006. Published ReferencesThomas Hart Benton, _The Arts of Life in America: A Series of Murals by Thomas Benton_ (New York: Whitney Museum of Art, 1932), 4-13. Ralph Flint, "Review of _The Art of Life in America_," _Art News_ (December 24, 1932). Matthew Baigell, _Thomas Hart Benton_ (New York: Abrams, 1974), 114-128. ISBN: 0810901323, 0810920557 Dennis R. Anderson, _Three Hundred Years of American Art in the Chrysler Museum_, exh. cat., Norfolk, Va., 1975, 185. Mahonri Sharp Young, "Primitive to Pop," _Apollo_ 107 (April 1978): 46-51. Eric M. Zafran and Mario Amaya, _Veronese to Franz Kline: Masterworks from the Chrysler Museum at Norfolk_, exh. cat., Chrysler Museum, Norfolk, Va., 1978. (Exh. cat. no. 40) _The Chrysler Museum: Selections from the Permanent Collection, Norfolk, Virginia_ (Norfolk: Chrysler Museum, 1982, 102-103. ISBN: 0-940744-37-6 Ann Dearsley Vernon, "How to Read an Artwork," _The Chrysler Museum Bulletin_ 12, no. 10 (October 1982): not paged. Henry Adams, _Thomas Hart Benton: An American Original_ (Kansas City, Mo.: Trustees of the Nelson Gallery Foundation, 1989), 184-191. ISBN: 0394571533, 0394759583 R. Douglas Hart and Mary K. Dains, ed., _Thomas Hart Benton: Artist, Writer, and Intellectual_ (State Historical Society of Missouri, 1989), 20, fig. 10. Jefferson C. Harrison, _The Chrysler Museum Handbook of the European and American Collections: Selected Paintings, Sculpture and Drawings_ (Norfolk: The Chrysler Museum, 1991), 182-183, no. 138. ISBN: 0-940744-59-7, 0-940744-62-7 Marvin Olasky, "Marxism & Me," _American Enterprise_ 6 (July/August 1995): 36-37. Martha N. Hagood and Jefferson C. Harrison, _American Art at the Chrysler Museum: Selected Paintings, Sculpture, and Drawings_ (Norfolk, Va.: Chrysler Museum of Art, 2005), 178-179, no. 110. ISBN: 0-940744-71-6 Jeff Harrison, _Collecting with Vision: Treasures From the Chrysler Museum of Art_ (London: D. Giles Ltd., 2007), 74 & 75, fig. 82. ISBN: 978-0-940744-72-1
