Barton Lidice Benes

Palette

  • Created:
  • 1994
  • Size:
  • 22 x 30 in.
  • Medium:
  • Mixed media with currency
  • Location:
  • Aldrich Hall 2nd Floor

In 1983, Benes received $6,000,000 from the Federal Reserve, stating “It would have been the largest grant ever given to an artist if it hadn’t been shredded.” In Palette, Benes used U.S. dollars to decorate the brush, and currency from around the globe to denote the colors of paint. While symbolizing that art has no cultural or geographical boundaries, the piece also brings to our attention that art has become a commodity.
-Catalog excerpt

benesbartonlidice35