Monday, March 7, 2016

Art at the Amon Carter - Thomas Hart Benton

Last Sunday, Ray and I zoomed over to Fort Worth to the Amon Carter Art Museum. A current special exhibit is  American Epic:Thomas Hart Benton and Hollywood

Missouri native, Benton (1889 - 1975) is famous for his large murals, his flair for drama, and big screen imagery. His thinking "If epic themes such as cultural identity, westward expansion, race relations, and the American dream could play out on the silver screen, why not on canvas." (brochure blurb).

Time spent in Hollywood behind the scenes allowed Benton to capture the cameramen, set designers, etc. His work is shown alongside various movie clips. Over 100 works - painting, drawings, and illustrated books - demonstrate the verve and energy Thomas Hart Benton brought to American art.

17 comments:

  1. Hi Joanne - what an interesting artist and his wife to learn about. His art looks almost like poster art ... our 1920s and 30s style ... fascinating .. cheers Hilary

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    1. it is very dramatic. I've seen some of his murals in public buildings and they are massive

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  2. Considering the physical size of his works, one hundred is a lot.

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    1. on a few pieces they did have smaller scale replicas, but you definitely understood the scope of his work from the exhibit

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  3. I like the cartoon look, and how three-dimensional that picture is. Glad you took it in, Joanne.
    Happy week to you.

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  6. Throw in a topless chick and you got yourself a deal.
    W.J. Clinton

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  7. I like the fact that he painted such large murals to make a bigger statement. Sounds like a fun exhibit to see.

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    1. the Amon Carter is a classy little place with excellent Americana art

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  8. It sounds like an interesting exhibit. It's nice you had a chance to see it. Thanks so much for stopping by my blog for Hilary's interview. It's great to meet you! :)

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  9. Reading your posts makes me think I should get out more. If only I wasn't such a hermit, there are plenty of exhibitions etc in the city nearest me. I was there this morning for the dentist!

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    1. what I like is it makes me think, adds to creativity, plus I watch people at these places - their interactions,etc. "research" Annalisa, "research"

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