Missouri Farmyard

Benton, Thomas Hart

Missouri Farmyard, 1936

Lithograph

Published by Associated American Artists, New York. Edition of 250. Signed in pencil lower right. A very good, well-inked impression. Framed 18.5 x 23 in. Condition: sheet toning; discoloration near windmill/upper edge/upper right; margins appear slightly trimmed, sheet size 13.75 x 17.25 in.; soft vertical folds, general soiling, foxing spots, and dimpling visible under raking light. Lot 4074.

Image size: 16" x 10"

Literature: Fath 10

Description: Thomas Hart Benton’s Missouri Farmyard (1936) is a lithograph of assured composure, rendered in the fluid, rhythmic forms characteristic of his Regionalist vision. Executed in 1936 and published by Associated American Artists in New York, this work—Fath 10—depicts a rural Missouri scene, likely drawn from Benton’s own mural work at the Missouri State Capitol ([thomashartbentonlithographs.com](https://thomashartbentonlithographs.com/missouri-farmyard/?utm_source=openai)). The composition centers on a sorghum mill powered by a mule, set within a farmyard that resonates with the social realism of the era. Benton’s lithographs, produced in modest editions and sold through AAA, were instrumental in bringing art into middle‑class American homes during the Great Depression ([www1.wellesley.edu](https://www1.wellesley.edu/davismuseum/artwork/node/165616?utm_source=openai)). At approximately 16 by 10 inches, the image conveys both the dignity of rural labor and the artist’s deep connection to Midwestern life.

$ 2,000