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Artworks

Thomas Hart Benton, Down the River, 1939
Thomas Hart Benton, Down the River, 1939 Framed image
Thomas Hart Benton, Down the River, 1939 Verso

Thomas Hart Benton 1889-1975

Down the River, 1939
Lithograph
31.5 x 25 cm
12.5 x 10 in
Edition of 250
1190004
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Exhibitions

JC Gallery, London, Thomas Hart Benton: Lithograph Show, 2023
JC Gallery, London, European vs American Modernism, 2024
JC Gallery, London, Decorative Art Fair, 2025

Publications

Catalogue reference: Fath 33

In this sentimental work from 1939, Benton expresses his admiration for the rural lifestyle of the Midwest. He highlights the connection between man and the land by depicting two figures enjoying a leisurely trip on a riverboat. Created a few years after relocating to Missouri with his family, this piece features a poignant foreground image of Benton’s son, seen from behind holding a fishing rod.


With brilliant draftsmanship, Benton uses smooth horizontal lines to depict a tranquil, silver river, its calm surface only gently disrupted by the rhythmic oars of the boatmen as they head downstream. Despite claiming to reject modernism, the figures in this work have a structured, muscular appearance, subtly revealing the influence of cubists such as Georges Braque and Pablo Picasso on Benton.


The artist revealed that this lithograph was based on drawings made during a 1939 float trip on the White River in the Ozarks. During the 1930s, he took twice-yearly float trips—every spring and summer—in this location. By choosing to create this lithograph of a private family trip, Benton immerses the viewer in his world and shares a moment of serene family togetherness.


A fine impression of this popular Benton image with good margins.
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