"Poor Boys Farm" Visual Rhetoric

Poor Boys Farm by Thomas Britt. 2005. USA. 13”x19,” Acrylic Paint.

Thomas Britt was raised and continues to live in rural Lafayette, Tennessee. He started painting at only seven years old while working on the farm with his grandfather. These early memories of being raised on the farm are his biggest influence and can be seen reflected in his art.

In this painting of Britt’s, his positive feelings toward farm life are instantly recognizable. Through the bright, but soft colors he is able to express the joy he found in his experiences working, fishing, and hunting with his family. The weather is portrayed as being very comfortable with a beautiful sunset just beginning to show. We see the tractors and farm equipment parked in the barn and someone is just returning from day working in the fields. As the boy returns, we see one of his dogs close to his side and can assume they spent the day together, while another waits excitedly for his master to return home.

The work conveys the warm atmosphere of a close-knit family who work together and spend their time together. The situation of sunset being close and those who were working returning home, seem to invite the assumption that the evening will be spent together, sharing the day’s details with one another. The clothesline and the old-style pickup truck also bring to mind that this painting takes place during “the good ol’ days” of America. Nostalgia permeates from Britt’s painting.

 Finally, after taking in the subject of the picture, it can be seen that beyond the small developed and cultivated fields surrounding the home, there is a rugged and untamed landscape. It would appear that this small family, with their young child (or children) has carved a life for themselves out of an undeveloped terrain. The title of this work, Poor Boys Farm, lends itself to the perception that life was not easy for these people. It was due to their hard work and ambition that they had ownership of their own small plot, and although they weren’t wealthy, they had something that was theirs.

One may derive from Thomas Britt’s painting that life on the farm is one to be cherished. Despite the many difficulties and challenges, there are many benefits to this way of life that far outweigh the negative aspects of it. The young boy spends his days in simple comforts unavailable to those who don’t live on the farm. Britt presents a very positive depiction of agriculture, and one that is accurate for many.

Sources:

Britt, Thomas. Poor Boys Farm. 2005. Karen’s Kollectibles. Shelby. Nebraska Antiques. Web. 25 March 2015.

“Thomas C. Britt Bio.” Nebraska Antiques. Karen Pandorf, n.d. Web. 25 March 2015.