Art Rural Electrification by Bess Bingham Hubbard

Art "Rural Electrification" by Bess Bingham Hubbard is a lithograph created in 1942. Unfamiliarity with lithography in general, and from this era in particular, is the primary reason for choosing this particular work. Moreover, the subject matter of the lithograph is poignant, as it juxtaposes rural simplicity with the intricacies of the modern world, symbolized by the power lines running through the farm. The monochrome element of lithography reminds the viewer of the lack of color and thereby strips down the art to its core themes.

Rendered using only the grey scale, "Rural Electrification" speaks volumes about the nature of rural life in America. The viewer knows that earth is brown and grass is green. Hubbard wants to direct the viewer's attention away from nature, to focus on more abstract principles like modernization and change. Using a lithograph and grey scale, Hubbard achieves the goal of stripping down the work to essential thematic elements. Likewise, time and motion are also main elements in Hubbard's "Rural Electrification," which hints at the eternal nature of farming communities.

Farms like the one depicted in "Rural Electrification" adapt according to advancements in technology. This is why the windmill is included in addition to the power lines. At one time, the windmill was new technology, just as power lines were at first. The passage of time is also symbolized by the movement of the earth, rendered in wave-like lines in the structure and composition of "Rural Electrification." A primary artistic element in Hubbard's "Rural Electrification" is texture, which is enhanced by the medium of lithography.

The sky and its few clouds are rendered softly in the background and with little actual texture save for the canvas itself, whereas textural elements become more richly detailed in the foreground and middle ground. Whereas the sky is lightly shaded, the ripples of land in the middle and foreground draw in the viewer and make the piece appear tactile. Line is a fourth visual element of "Rural Electrification. The power lines provide verticality, as does the windmill.

Most of the other lines, such as those demarcating crops in the field, are undulating and curvilinear. The difference between the stark verticality and straightness of the power lines and the curvaceous nature of land mirrors the thematic juxtaposition between traditional and modern farming. One of the principles of art evident in Hubbard's lithograph is balance. Hubbard is not making a judgment against electrification, so much as she is simply describing and depicting it as integral to the progression of human life.

There is an inherent balance between progress and tradition, between nature and human intervention, between the past and the future. The composition renders each element in a balanced way, such that the power lines and the broad landscape occupy equal amounts of the viewer's visual attention. Another principle in "Rural Electrification" is rhythm. There is a rhythmic element in the way the land has waves, as sound is usually rendered.