Skip to main contentProvenanceThe artist
Margo Pollins Schab, Inc., New York, New York
Terra Foundation for the Arts Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1995
Exhibition HistoryPublished References
George Bellows
(American, 1882–1925)
Billy Sunday
1923
Lithograph on Japanese paper
Image: 9 x 16 1/4 in. (22.9 x 41.3 cm)
Sheet: 13 11/16 x 21 1/2 in. (34.8 x 54.6 cm)
Mat: 18 x 24 in. (45.7 x 61.0 cm)
Sheet: 13 11/16 x 21 1/2 in. (34.8 x 54.6 cm)
Mat: 18 x 24 in. (45.7 x 61.0 cm)
Credit LineTerra Foundation for American Art, Daniel J. Terra Collection
Object number1995.13
SignedIn stone, lower center: Geo Bellows
InterpretationGeorge Bellows's lithograph Billy Sunday is a compelling picture of the famous evangelical preacher on stage, energetically straddling the surfaces of the tables at which his supporters sit as he verbally assaults his docile audience. Bellows celebrates the forceful physical presence of a charismatic individual, embodied in his emphatic lunge as he thrusts his pointing finger toward a crowd of potential converts to underscore the power of his words. Strong tonal contrasts underscore the dominant presence of this figure against the dim expanse of the revival tent, its forest of upright supports illuminated by the diffused glow of scattered lights.
For almost forty years, Billy Sunday toured the nation, preaching to huge, spellbound audiences. A former baseball player, he was renowned for the energetic style of his preaching and the lunging poses he struck as his fervor reached its highest pitch. In January 1915, Bellows and Communist activist and reporter John Reed attended a Sunday revival meeting in Philadelphia on assignment for New York's Metropolitan Magazine. The experience inspired Bellows to make a painting of the scene in 1916 and six years later this lithograph, which is closely based on one of the drawings he made to illustrate Reed's article. Repelled by Sunday's spell-binding zealotry, Bellows commented in 1917 that Sunday was "the worst thing that ever happened to America.... He is death to imagination, to spirituality, to art" (Bellows quoted in Myers and Ayres, 1988, p.53). Bellows's powerful image is one of 193 lithographs he made between 1916 and his sudden death nine years later. It was one of several lithographs made between 1916 and 1923 in which he explored the pervasive influence of religious dogma in American life.
For almost forty years, Billy Sunday toured the nation, preaching to huge, spellbound audiences. A former baseball player, he was renowned for the energetic style of his preaching and the lunging poses he struck as his fervor reached its highest pitch. In January 1915, Bellows and Communist activist and reporter John Reed attended a Sunday revival meeting in Philadelphia on assignment for New York's Metropolitan Magazine. The experience inspired Bellows to make a painting of the scene in 1916 and six years later this lithograph, which is closely based on one of the drawings he made to illustrate Reed's article. Repelled by Sunday's spell-binding zealotry, Bellows commented in 1917 that Sunday was "the worst thing that ever happened to America.... He is death to imagination, to spirituality, to art" (Bellows quoted in Myers and Ayres, 1988, p.53). Bellows's powerful image is one of 193 lithographs he made between 1916 and his sudden death nine years later. It was one of several lithographs made between 1916 and 1923 in which he explored the pervasive influence of religious dogma in American life.
Margo Pollins Schab, Inc., New York, New York
Terra Foundation for the Arts Collection, Chicago, Illinois, 1995
Exhibition History
On Process: The American Print, Technique Examined, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, January 13–March 2, 2001.
Héroïque et le quotidien: les artistes américains, 1820–1920 (The Extraordinary and the Everyday: American Perspectives, 1820–1920), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–November 30, 2001. [exh. cat.]
Edward Hopper, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain and Galeries Nationales, Grand Palais, Paris, France (organizers). Venues: Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain, June 12–September 16, 2012; Galeries nationales, Grand Palais, Paris, France, October 5, 2012–January 28, 2013. (Paris venue only).
Terra Collection-in-Residence, Ashmolean Museum of Art & Archaeology, Oxford, United Kingdom, September 15, 2022–September 30, 2026.
Héroïque et le quotidien: les artistes américains, 1820–1920 (The Extraordinary and the Everyday: American Perspectives, 1820–1920), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–November 30, 2001. [exh. cat.]
Edward Hopper, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain and Galeries Nationales, Grand Palais, Paris, France (organizers). Venues: Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain, June 12–September 16, 2012; Galeries nationales, Grand Palais, Paris, France, October 5, 2012–January 28, 2013. (Paris venue only).
Terra Collection-in-Residence, Ashmolean Museum of Art & Archaeology, Oxford, United Kingdom, September 15, 2022–September 30, 2026.
Bellows, George. "The Big Idea: George Bellows Talks About Patriotism for Beauty." Touchstone 1 (July 1917): 269–75. Text p. 270.
Weitenkampf, Frank. "George W. Bellows, Lithographer." Print Connoisseur 4 (1924): 225–44.
Bellows, Emma S. and Thomas Beer. George W. Bellows: His Lithographs. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1927. Text p. 250 (index); ill. no. 111 (black & white).
Francis, Henry Sayles. "The Lithographs of George Wesley Bellows." Print Collector's Quarterly 27 (1940): 139–65.
Boorsch, Suzanne. "The Lithographs of George Bellows." Art News (March 1976): 60–62.
Mason, Lauris and Joan Ludman. The Lithographs of George Bellows: A Catalog Raisonné. Millwood, New York: KTO Press, 1977. No. 143, pp. 184–85.
Myers, Jane and Linda Ayres. George Bellows, The Artist and His Lithographs, 1916–1924. (exh. cat., Amon Carter Museum). Fort Worth, Texas: Amon Carter Museum, 1988. Text p. 53; ill. no. 44, p. 51 (black & white).
Mason, Lauris and Joan Ludman. The Lithographs of George Bellows: A Catalogue Raisonné. San Francisco: A. Wofsy Fine Arts, 1992. No. 143, p. 212.
Cartwright, Derrick R. The Extraordinary and the Everyday: American Perspectives, 1820–1920. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2001. Text pp. 20, 22 (checklist); fig. 11, p. 20 (black & white). [specific reference to Terra print]
Cartwright, Derrick R. L'Héroïque et le quotidian: les artistes américains, 1820–1920. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2001. Text pp. 20, 22 (checklist); fig. 11, p. 20 (black & white). [specific reference to Terra print]
Ottinger, Didier and Tomàs Llorens. Hopper. (exh. cat. Museo Thyssen–Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain and Réunion des Musées Nationaux–Grand Palais, Paris, France). Paris, France: Réunion des Musées Nationaux–Grand Palais, 2012. (English and French versions). Ill. cat. no. 8, p. 74 (color).
Weitenkampf, Frank. "George W. Bellows, Lithographer." Print Connoisseur 4 (1924): 225–44.
Bellows, Emma S. and Thomas Beer. George W. Bellows: His Lithographs. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1927. Text p. 250 (index); ill. no. 111 (black & white).
Francis, Henry Sayles. "The Lithographs of George Wesley Bellows." Print Collector's Quarterly 27 (1940): 139–65.
Boorsch, Suzanne. "The Lithographs of George Bellows." Art News (March 1976): 60–62.
Mason, Lauris and Joan Ludman. The Lithographs of George Bellows: A Catalog Raisonné. Millwood, New York: KTO Press, 1977. No. 143, pp. 184–85.
Myers, Jane and Linda Ayres. George Bellows, The Artist and His Lithographs, 1916–1924. (exh. cat., Amon Carter Museum). Fort Worth, Texas: Amon Carter Museum, 1988. Text p. 53; ill. no. 44, p. 51 (black & white).
Mason, Lauris and Joan Ludman. The Lithographs of George Bellows: A Catalogue Raisonné. San Francisco: A. Wofsy Fine Arts, 1992. No. 143, p. 212.
Cartwright, Derrick R. The Extraordinary and the Everyday: American Perspectives, 1820–1920. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2001. Text pp. 20, 22 (checklist); fig. 11, p. 20 (black & white). [specific reference to Terra print]
Cartwright, Derrick R. L'Héroïque et le quotidian: les artistes américains, 1820–1920. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 2001. Text pp. 20, 22 (checklist); fig. 11, p. 20 (black & white). [specific reference to Terra print]
Ottinger, Didier and Tomàs Llorens. Hopper. (exh. cat. Museo Thyssen–Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain and Réunion des Musées Nationaux–Grand Palais, Paris, France). Paris, France: Réunion des Musées Nationaux–Grand Palais, 2012. (English and French versions). Ill. cat. no. 8, p. 74 (color).