Thomas Hart Benton 1889 - 1975

Mrs. Selwyn S. Schwartz, Chicago, Illinois
Private Collection, 1968 (acquired from the above)
By descent to the present owner

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Thomas Hart Benton rose to prominence in the 1930s as a painter of daily life in rural America. Born in Neosho, Missouri, Benton developed a strong sense of naturalism at an early age given the politicized environment in which he grew up. His great-uncle was Missouri's first Senator and his father was a congressional representative who often invited other public figures into the family’s home. Such exposure gave Benton an interest in the American scene that developed into a lifelong theme in his artistic career. His extensive travels coupled with his family’s prominence made Benton as much a historian as an artist, and as much a nationalist as a regionalist.

Leaving behind the bustle of New York City, Benton visited the island of Martha’s Vineyard for the first time in the summer of 1920. He was immediately enamored by the island’s beauty and found inspiration in its scenery and inhabitants: “It was in Martha’s Vineyard that I first really began my intimate study of the American environment and its people” (as quoted in Polly Burroughs, Thomas Hart Benton: A Portrait, Garden City, New York, 1981, p. 61). The island became an integral part of the Benton family's life, a place they returned to each summer thereafter. Executed in 1945, Tax Work likely depicts Henry Look’s farm which was up the hill from Benton’s home in Martha’s Vineyard. He painted this subject on several occasions, each time depicting farmers working with sickles instead of machinery.  The imagery relates closely to one of the artist’s most well-known lithographs titled Island Hay, which he executed the following year.   

In celebrating the American way of life, Benton was sympathetic in his portrayal of farmers and field workers, favoring the themes of dedication and hard work. As Matthew Baigell writes, “In his paintings completed since the war, Benton has explored older themes and styles, but even the casual observer will notice changes. The energies he formerly channeled into defining an American style and spirit have been directed toward a profound appreciation of his subject matter. Some of his best portraits have been painted in these last years… In many ways, though, his more remarkable achievements are the landscapes of this period. In these it would appear that Benton’s overwhelming love for America found its true outlet in the streams, hills and mountains of the country, populated by people unsuspectingly living out their time, quietly enjoying themselves, living easily on the land, celebrating nothing more than their existence” (Thomas Hart Benton, New York, 1973, p. 183).