The Ackland Art Museum has unveiled an exhibition of Thomas Hart Benton lithographs that will introduce viewers to the vivid scenes and lively characters of America’s past — if they can find the gallery.
“Chords of Memory” features expressive prints that depict scenes and memories from Benton’s travels throughout the South and Midwest during the Great Depression.
His careful attention to detail and deft use of angles and shading capture the rustic simplicity of the time.
The Ackland has displayed the 10 lithographs that make up the exhibition in a single gallery, tucked in a back corner of the museum.
The show’s hidden placement in the museum and its Spring Break opening date make it seem as if the exhibition is meant to be overlooked.
But it shouldn’t be.
The prints emphasize the importance of music and memory in America’s heartland.
Benton incorporates a music motif into his lithographs with literal depictions of musicians.
A father teaches his daughter to play guitar in “The Music Lesson,” and Missouri musicians strum their instruments in the countryside in “Coming ‘Round the Mountain” — both expressive examples of how music forges bonds across generations and backgrounds.
