Works Attributed to Thomas Hart Benton and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff Highlight 500 Gallery’s Upcoming Sale

The upcoming Prestige Collection: Modern & Impressionist sale at 500 Gallery will present over 250 lots of masterpieces representing Abstraction, Realism, Surrealism, and Pop Art styles. Leading the sale is The Year of Peril, a painting attributed to Thomas Hart Benton (1889 – 1975). Considered one of the greatest pre-war Regionalist painters, Benton’s vibrant landscapes, portrayal of Midwestern people, and depictions of daily life received a great deal of attention. The available oil on canvas features various motifs from Benton’s Year of Peril series (1941 – 1942), which he created soon after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The Year of Peril: A Series of War Paintings highlighted the threat to American ideals by Nazism and fascism. 

Another top lot in this sale is a painting attributed to Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, titled Two Faces. Rottluff, a German Expressionist painter and printmaker, was one of the four founders of the artist group Die Brücke. He is best known for his Expressionist landscapes and nudes. The available work is characterized by thick brushstrokes and a bold color palette. It shows a woman’s face and a ghostly face in the background. This oil-on-panel piece was completed around 1914 and formerly belonged to a North Carolina estate. It is hand-signed and unframed. Visit Bidsquare to view the Prestige Collection: Modern & Impressionist sale and browse other online auctions.