Thomas Hart Benton and the Indiana Murals

Decorating the Indiana hall at the 1933 Century of Progress Exposition in Chicago was a bold and colorful sequence of paintings by American muralist Thomas Hart Benton depicting the social, economic, and cultural history of the Hoosier state from mound building to the 1930s. In this dramatic 250-foot mural, which has been on display at the Bloomington campus of Indiana University since 1940, Benton sought to create art that spoke to a mainstream audience in a realist style.

This book features a full-color gatefold which represents the flow of the murals along with a portfolio of color reproductions of the 22 existing panels. Accompanying essays trace the history of the murals' creation and their installation at Indiana University, the visual narrative that Benton invented, the artist's method as seen in a series of preparatory drawings, and a detailed account of the conservation of the murals.

Kathleen A. Foster is the Robert L. McNeil, Jr., Curator of American Art and Director of the Center for American Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. She lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Nanette Esseck Brewer is Lucienne M. Glaubinger Curator of Works on Paper at the Indiana University Art Museum. She lives in Bloomington, Indiana.

Margaret Contompasis is Gayl W. and Beverly Doster Conservator of Painting at the Indiana University Art Museum. She lives in Bloomington, Indiana.