Rainey Bennett facts for kids

Rainey Bennett (born June 14, 1907 – died July 26, 1998) was an American artist. He was known for his beautiful watercolors, large murals, and illustrations for books and newspapers. His amazing artwork can be found in many important art museums.

Rainey Bennett's Artworks

Rainey Bennett's art is displayed in famous places. These include the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, DC has one of his watercolors. It is called Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela, 1952. The Art Institute of Chicago also owns three of his artworks.

Becoming an Illustrator

Besides painting, Rainey Bennett also worked as an illustrator. He drew pictures for books and other publications. He often worked with Scott Foresman publishers. During the holidays, he created the daily Christmas ads for Marshall Field's department store. In 1960, he wrote and illustrated his own children's book. It was called The Secret Hiding Place. The story was about a baby hippopotamus looking for a special secret spot.

Painting Murals

Rainey Bennett created many large murals. Murals are big paintings on walls or ceilings. From 1934 to 1943, the United States government supported artists. They painted murals for public buildings.

In 1938, Bennett painted two oil murals for post offices. One was in Dearborn, Michigan, called Ten Eyck’s Tavern on Chicago Road. The other was in Rushville, Illinois, titled Hart Fellows - Builder of Rushville. In 1941, he painted George Martin's Home Overlooking Old Naper Hill for the Naperville, Illinois post office. He also painted 13 panels for the Neil House Hotel in Columbus, Ohio. Sadly, this building was later torn down. The location of these panels is now unknown.

Creating Watercolors

In 1939, Rainey Bennett made 36 watercolors of Venezuela. He was asked to do this by the Stanford Oil Company and Nelson Rockefeller. Rockefeller bought 24 of these paintings. They were shown in a two-year traveling exhibit by the Museum of Modern Art. In 1940, these watercolors were displayed at the well-known Downtown Gallery in New York. Today, they are part of the St. Louis Art Museum collection. In 1949, Rockefeller asked Bennett to paint more watercolors of other South American countries.

Later Life and Death

Rainey Bennett passed away on December 11, 1998. He was 91 years old and died at his home in Lincoln Park, Chicago. His wife, Ann, who was a professional dancer, had died in 1975. He was survived by his companion, two daughters, and a son.

Art Exhibitions

Rainey Bennett's art was shown in many places. Here are some of them:

• Downtown Gallery, New York
• Art Institute of Chicago; Art in Illinois, In Honor of the Illinois Sesquicentennial, June/September, 1968, Quiet Blue
• University of Illinois, Exhibit of Contemporary American Painting, Feb-April, 1949; [1], Pamela and Renee
• Cleveland Museum
• Toledo Museum
• Whitney Museum
• Fairweather Hardin Gallery, Chicago