Making Of A Mural, The

The Making Of A Mural 05:01:15 Lester Siegel, President of Harzfeld’s Department Store, Kansas City, & Thomas Hart Benton talking (MOS) in store about placement of a mural. CU hands drawing sketch for 5 x 22 ft mural, first in store & then elaborating at drafting table. 05:02:22 Making clay model of sketch; painted mural on wall seen behind Benon’s head. 05:02:59 At easel w/ small colored painting adding shading for depth. 05:03:48 Sketching figure of human male model for muscles; then clay models. Preparing cartoon drawing for mural & developing grid over it. CUs. 05:04:59 Checking frame in studio. Putting threads for horizonal & pencil lines for vertical on panel; subdividing some squares. Sketching cartoon onto canvas. CU Benton’s face. 05:06:18 Lighting pipe. Breaking egg for yolk to be used as binder. CU brushes & paints. Painting onto sketch on canvas. Sketching & transferring to finished mural. 05;08:10 CU addition luminous paints for highlights; looks thru diminishing glass (GOOD CU) to give effect of viewing distance. Working w/ paints. 05:09:20 Finished sky. Touching up finishing touches. CUs of finished mural. Wiping down. finsihed mural. Abrupt end. Artist; Muralist; Americana; 1940s; 1946; NOTE: Mural represented taming of Missouri River using Greek myth of Hercules wrestling river god Achelous. Mural is now at Smithsonian Museum of American Art.