Thomas Hart Benton: New York

"The Boy" by Thomas Hart Benton

"Realizing that I would never make a living in my home town, my father agreed to finance a stay in New York, where I thought I might find opportunities with my portraits or with some of the commercial arts which flourished there. I arrived in New York in early June of 1912, and set myself up in the old Lincoln Square Arcade. 

Shortly after arriving, I received a small commission to space the lettering and pictures of an importer's booklet on Japanese porcelain and china. I obtained an introduction to a Mrs. O'Hara, a lady then widely known as a professional china decorator. Visiting her studio, I picked up the basic techniques for the application of vitrifiable paints and enamels, which I would later put to some practical use for myself.

One of my friends was now receiving very substantial sums of heads of pretty girls, executed in pastels, which he sold to magazines and calendar houses. If I could find a pretty enough girl, I said to myself, there is no reason why I could not paint straight realistic portraits of her and sell them. I sought out an attractive model who was willing to pose for a share of the profits if I sold her picture. My first venture was successful. I sold my young lady's portrait for one hundred dollars to a weekly magazine. This, however, was my only success in the pretty-girl business. Though I tried for weeks, I could not duplicate it.

I continued to try my hand in other commercial directions, though with but very moderate success. I invested some of my newly earned money in porcelain bowls and china plates which I decorated in the flat manner of my florals. This proved to be a fairly profitable venture. I sold all of my products. But purely decorative work did not long satisfy me. I turned again to portraits, and, among others, painted one of my younger sister. I submitted this picture to the National Academy jury, but it was not accepted. However, at an exhibition of the Academy 'refuses,' it attracted attention and was reproduced in 'Collier's,' then a nationally circulated magazine - my first widespread publicity."

To be continued

(Excerpts from "An American in Art: A Professional and Technical Autobiography" by Thomas Hart Benton.)