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Essay: Cradling Wheat by Thomas Hart Benton

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  • Subject area(s): Photography and arts essays
  • Reading time: 4 minutes
  • Price: Free download
  • Published: 13 January 2020*
  • Last Modified: 18 September 2024
  • File format: Text
  • Words: 1,038 (approx)
  • Number of pages: 5 (approx)

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The painting Cradling Wheat, by Thomas Hart Benton depicts three men and a young boy in a field harvesting and collecting wheat. These characters are positioned in the foreground of the work, with the surrounding landscape behind them. The four figures and the surrounding environment come together in a blend of shapes and colors. The blue sky and yellow-tan color seen in the fields of grain and the hills gives the viewer a sense of what the weather might be like. The men’s faces are hidden from view, and each are wearing long dark pants with blue shirts. The shapes, colors, and characters in the painting make it attractive and catch the attention of the viewer.

Thomas Benton’s work is known for its movement (Ellison). The motion portrayed in his works communicate “the energy, rush, and confusion of American life” (Ellison). The shapes of the men and the environment in Benton’s painting make the picture seem like it is moving. The figures working in the field lean and bend as they cut and collect the grain. This action is also portrayed in the way the hills, trees, and clouds are painted. The viewer can almost feel the movement of the men working because it is expressed throughout the entire painting. The curve in the surrounding hills mimic the curve of the men’s backs as they bend over to gather the wheat. This motion extends into the lining of trees just beyond the wheat field. The trees move in a sort of squiggly line across the painting until they reach a very large tree at the far left. The tree curves upward and the viewer’s eyes follow until they reach the sky. The spiraling motion ends in a swirl of white clouds. While the figures and the scenery are independent from each other, their shapes blend together to create a wave of motion that moves across the entire painting. When the viewer looks at the painting, their eyes are taken from right to left. The viewer has no trouble figuring out what is happening in the painting because the image guides the viewer along with ease. character are separate and the scenery are separate from each other is separate from the other, but together the lines and curves of their bodies resemble the stalks of wheat and the cutting movement of the scythe. Together they create a sweeping curved line in the shape of a scythe that moves up through the line of trees and into the distant hills and cloudy sky. The trees bend and lean just like the men and continue this upward movement, ending in a swirl of clouds stirring about and moving with the wind (Ellison). The motion in this picture leads the viewer’s eyes across the entire painting which, in turn, gives them that sweeping energy effect.

The colors present in the wheat, sky, hills, and trees give the painting life. The blues, greens, yellows, and browns used in the painting give the viewer a sense of what the day might feel like. The golden yellow color of the wheat and the burnt brown color of the hills give the viewer the sense that it is a hot, summer day. This can also be inferred by the straw hats that the men are wearing, and the bucket of water in the bottom right corner. The wheat is very vivid and pops out against the blue and green background. The bright shade of yellow that Benton chooses to paint the field is darker at the bottom and becomes lighter as it moves up the stalks of wheat. The top has a soft hue which makes it seem like the wheat is blowing gently in a dry wind. However, the background sets a completely different mood. It mainly consists of different shades of blue and green, which suggest that the day may be cool. The men are also wearing long pants and long sleeve shirts, which would also suggest that it is chilly outside.

The faces of the men in the painting are hidden from the sight of the viewer. They are either hidden by their hats, or they have their backs turned. By hiding their faces the viewer can conclude that the identities of these characters are not important to the meaning behind the painting. Benton also presents these men in similar clothing: long, dark pants and long-sleeve shirts, which adds to the idea that these men are not important because they are not unique from each other. The painting depicts times before electricity and the invention of the combine because the man to the far left is using a scythe and the others are using their hands to collect the grain. This could suggest that the only meaning behind the painting is to show the life of farmers before the invention of machines. Because the men do not have any identity and are seemingly unimportant to meaning behind the painting, the viewer is impersonal to the picture and can simply enjoy the colors and shapes that make it visually pleasing.

The shapes, colors, and characters make the painting attractive. Each of these three aspects of the painting work together to create a beautiful, scenic picture of rolling hills and expansive wheat fields that depict the everyday life of farmers in a Midwestern area, in the 1930’s. The lines and angles of the painting make the picture look as if it is actually moving and gives off a kind of energy that the viewer can almost feel just by looking at the painting. Whenever I look at art, I usually do not try to analyze what the work might be saying or find a deeper meaning behind it. This painting may have a deeper meaning behind it, but the lack of attention to the identities of the farmers leads me to believe that there does not have to be a deeper meaning. Instead, the many different colors and the sweeping motion created by the bodies of the workers and the surrounding environment, were enough to grab my attention causing me to gaze at the painting and take in the simple fact that it is a pretty and pleasing picture.

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