Frank W. Benson

“I follow the light; where it comes from, where it goes.”

Frank W. Benson is best known for his impressionist “plein-air” paintings. He was focused on capturing light. An American artist from Salem, Massachusetts, Benson is known for his realistic portraits, American Impressionist paintings, watercolors and etchings.

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Painter

Frank W. Benson is best known for his impressionist
“plein-air” or outdoor paintings. He was focused on capturing light. He once said, “I follow the light; where it comes from, where it goes.”

Etcher

Benson, one of the best printmakers of the 20th century, is credited with making wildlife prints a distinct genre. “The whole process from the bare plate to the finished print is full of fascinating possibilities and possible failures.”

Lithographer

Perhaps his rarest medium. He used his imagination, coupling it with personal experience and solid principals of composition—what he called “design”—to convey his birds and sportsmen with such great appeal.

“Frank Benson painted some of the most beautiful pictures ever executed by an American artist. They are images alive with reflections of youth and optimism, projecting a way of life at once innocent and idealized and yet resonant with a sense of certain, selective realities of contemporary times.”

William H. Gerdts, Art Historian

Benson News

The latest from exhibitions, auctions, and more.

Recent Purchase of Benson’s “Firelight” to be Shown at Westerly Museum of American Impressionism
Frank W. Benson Firelight signed and dated ‘F.W. Benson ’93’ (lower left) oil on canvas 40 x 30 in. (101.6 x 76.2 cm.) Painted in 1893. UPDATE: The recent acquisition of “Firelight” was made possible… Read more: Recent Purchase of Benson’s “Firelight” to be Shown at Westerly Museum of American Impressionism
Benson’s first Impressionist Painting of his Children
By the time Frank W. Benson painted Children in the Woods in 1898, he was already recognized as a gifted teacher, a sought-after portraitist, a painter of wide-ranging subjects, and the artist who would later earn the… Read more: Benson’s first Impressionist Painting of his Children
Christies to Auction Benson Oil “Monadnock”
Christies will auction this piece on January 23, 2025 In 1889 Frank W. Benson’s close friend Joseph Lindon-Smith invited Frank and his new wife Ellen to visit him in Dublin, New Hampshire, a small summer… Read more: Christies to Auction Benson Oil “Monadnock”
A Long Friendship and a Long-hidden Painting
Two Boys in a Boat is a quick oil study of George Benson and his close friend Henry Chaplin. The boys were inseparable, spending their days together collecting arrowheads, hunting, bird watching, sailing or rowing… Read more: A Long Friendship and a Long-hidden Painting
Benson’s First Painting of His Favorite Model For Sale
“My Little Girl” currently for sale Frank W. Benson once said that he was delighted when his “home grown models” began to arrive. Of his four children, his oldest Eleanor was the child he used most often as… Read more: Benson’s First Painting of His Favorite Model For Sale