Thomas Hart Benton 1889-1975
33.7 x 18.4 cm
This work will be included in the forthcoming catalogue raisonné being prepared by the Thomas Hart Benton Catalogue Raisonné Foundation. Committee Members: Dr. Henry Adams, Anthony Benton Gude, Andrew Thompson and Michael Owen.
Thomas Hart Benton painted History of New York – 1653: Colonial Era (Pilgrims and Indians) – Study circa 1927 as a study for an ambitious four-part mural project he endeavored to produce for lunettes in the New York Public Library. Benton’s first foray into murals took place in 1922, when he painted his 18-panel The American Historical Epic. His second attempt, History of New York aimed to portray a visual documentation of four important periods in New York history: “Indians,” “Colonial Era,” “Civil War,” and “New York Today.” History of New York – 1653: Colonial Era (Pilgrims and Indians) – Study depicts a group of pilgrims negotiating with an indigenous man in a colonial town. The New York Public Library trustees unfortunately never commissioned Benton to realize the murals, and the finished panels remained in the artist's collection until his death.
Provenance
The artist; toThe Thomas Hart and Rita Piacenza Benton Testamentary Trusts, 1975 until the present