Benton created this compositional study of urban activities and pastimes in preparation for executing a panel in his large mural, America Today, also in the Museum’s collection (2012.478a–j). This study captures the forms, color contrasts, and highlights of the finished panel and sets the outlines for the aluminum-leaf frame moldings that split the scenes. In the panels, Benton made slight adjustments and connected the figures in interesting ways. Here, for example, the four figures riding the subway are roughly outlined, but in the mural they physically connect in a provocative manner—a hand grazes a knee, shoulders are jammed together.
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Artwork Details
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Title:Study for 'City Activities with Subway'
Artist:Thomas Hart Benton (American, Neosho, Missouri 1889–1975 Kansas City, Missouri)
Date:1930
Medium:Oil on Masonite
Dimensions:15 1/4 × 23 3/4 in. (38.7 × 60.3 cm)
Classification:Paintings
Credit Line:Gift of AXA Equitable, 2016
Object Number:2016.425.28
Inscription: Signed (lower right): Benton
the artist (1930–d. 1975); Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Testamentary Trusts, Kansas City, Mo. (1975–87; sold in 1987 to Equitable Life); The Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States (now AXA), New York (1987–2016; their gift to MMA)
Lawrence. Spencer Museum of Art, University of Kansas. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," July 13–September 14, 1980, no. 47 (as "Preliminary Study A" for "America Today").
Tulsa, Okla. Philbrook Art Center. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," February 15–March 15, 1981, no. 47.
St. Louis. Old Ordnance Room, Jefferson Barracks County Park. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," July 9–September 13, 1981, no. 47.
Hays, Kan. Visual Arts Center, Fort Hays State University. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," September 20–October 25, 1981, no. 47.
Lincoln, Neb. Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," November 1–December 6, 1981, no. 47.
Oklahoma City. Oklahoma Art Center. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," December 13, 1981–January 17, 1982, no. 47.
Wichita, Kan. Wichita Art Museum. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," January 24–February 28, 1982, no. 47.
Joplin, Mo. Spiva Art Center. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," March 7–April 11, 1982, no. 47.
Mason City, Iowa. Charles H. MacNider Museum. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," April 18–May 23, 1982, no. 47.
David and Alfred Smart Gallery, University of Chicago. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," May 30–July 4, 1982, no. 47.
Little Rock. Arkansas Arts Center. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," July 11–August 15, 1982, no. 47.
Springfield, Mo. Springfield Art Museum. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," August 22–September 26, 1982, no. 47.
Hunstville, Ala. Huntsville Museum of Art. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," October 3–November 7, 1982, no. 47.
Nashville. Tennessee State Museum. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," January 16–February 27, 1983, no. 47.
St. Paul. Minnesota Museum of Art. "Benton's Bentons: Selections from The Thomas Hart Benton and Rita P. Benton Trusts," May 13–June 26, 1983, no. 47.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Thomas Hart Benton’s 'America Today' Mural Rediscovered," September 30, 2014–April 19, 2015, no catalogue (lent by AXA, New York; see MMA Bulletin 72 Winter 2015).
Museum of the City of New York. "This Is New York: 100 Years of the City in Art and Pop Culture," May 26, 2023–July 21, 2024, no catalogue.
"Thomas Hart Benton's 'America Today' Mural Rediscovered." American Art Review 26 (November–December 2014), ill. p. 89 (color).
Randall R. Griffey and Elizabeth Mankin Kornhauser in "Thomas Hart Benton's 'America Today'." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 72 (Winter 2015), p. 14, fig. 12 (color).
Randall Griffey in "Recent Acquisitions. A Selection: 2016–2018." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 76 (Fall 2018), p. 72.
Thomas Hart Benton (American, Neosho, Missouri 1889–1975 Kansas City, Missouri)
1937
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