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Departure of the Joads. From The Grapes of Wrath Thomas Hart Benton, 1939 (Art Institute of Chicago). Artist Biography: Thomas Hart Benton. He was born in Neosho, Missouri in 1889 and died in 1975.
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Departure of the Joads From The Grapes of Wrath Thomas Hart Benton, 1939 (Art Institute of Chicago)
Artist Biography: Thomas Hart Benton • He was born in Neosho, Missouri in 1889 and died in 1975. • He was named after his great-uncle, Thomas Hart Benton, who was one of the first two United States Senators from Missouri. • His almost chiseled paintings showed everyday outlook of life in the United States. Thomas Hart Benton
Bio Continued • Benton married Rita Piacenza in 1922. • They met while Benton was teaching art classes for a neighborhood organization in New York City and she was one of his students. • He is best known as a muralist and his works may be seen in the New School for Social Research. • He is assured a permanent place among America's greatest artists.
Visual Analysis • Lithograph on ivory wove paper • 403 x 601 mm • The rugged illustration of structure is characteristic of Benton's particular regional art. • Egg tempera and oil painting.
Historical & Contextual Analysis • It embellishes a disagreement between the desire to react to adversity and tragedy by focusing on one’s own desires and the urge to jeopardize one’s safety by working for a common good. • It represents the dust bowl and Depression.
Significance • The rough interpretation of style is distinctive of Benton's unique regional art. • The original painting hangs in the Ralph Foster Museum. • The art was custom-made by 20th Century Fox to promote their film production of John Steinbeck's novel, The Grapes of Wrath.