WATTS INDEXThe canonical database of visual culture

Artists›Kenyon Cox

Kenyon Cox

Artist

WA-00047683

Painting

Representation

None documented

Institutional Exhibitions

Works in Collection

116

Assets Indexed

Authority-backed Facts

Publications Referenced

40%

Profile Completeness

Cultural Positioning

Influence Graph

No influence edges encoded yet.

Field Verification (3 fields)

1 cross-verified · 2 single-source

Is PublishedPath D Subcohort4 Directory 2026-05-23· 100%✓
Birth yearArtsy· 85%
NationalityArtsy· 85%

Source Registry (1)

Smithsoniansub-cohort-4-backfill:smithsonian
Tier 1 · Institutional40%

About

Why this artist matters now

Kenyon Cox was an American painter and muralist dedicated to classical figuration and academic technique during the late 19th century. His large-scale murals, executed in tempera and oil, conveyed allegorical and historical narratives in a manner aligned with Beaux-Arts principles. Cox served as an influential instructor and critic who defended academic training against emerging modernist movements. His work emphasized anatomical precision, balanced composition, and the primacy of drawing, positioning him as a custodian of European academic tradition in American visual culture.

Source: Smithsonian Institution · Trust score: 40% · Updated 16d ago

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Taste overlap and adjacency

Movement

—

Medium

Painting

Related Artists

6 in graph

Institutional

Museum Collections

Smithsonian American Art Museum National Gallery of Art

Canonical record

Artworks (10)

Tradition

1916 · oil on canvas

Unframed: 106 x 165.5 cm (41 3/4 x 65 3/16 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Sketch

1912 · graphite

Sheet: 46 x 30.1 cm (18 1/8 x 11 7/8 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Allegorical Female Figures

1912 · graphite

Sheet: 50.7 x 40.3 cm (19 15/16 x 15 7/8 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Design for United States Currency

1912 · graphite

Image: 15.9 x 37.8 cm (6 1/4 x 14 7/8 in.); Sheet: 30.3 x 50.8 cm (11 15/16 x 20 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Science Instructing Industry: Drapery Study

1898 · Graphite on off-white laid paper mounted on secondary support of Egyptian linen

14 7/8 x 19 7/8 in. (37.8 x 50.5 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Science Instructing Industry: Nude Study

1898 · Graphite on off-white laid paper mounted on secondary support of Egyptian linen

14 7/8 x 19 7/16 in. (37.8 x 49.4 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Study for Ceiling Decoration

1891 · Graphite on off-white laid paper for transfer

14 5/8 x 20 in. (37.1 x 50.8 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Harp Player (A Solo)

1888 · Oil on canvas

30 x 17 7/8 in. (76.2 x 45.4 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Augustus Saint-Gaudens

1887 · Oil on canvas

33 1/2 x 47 1/8 in. (85.1 x 119.7 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Theodore Robinson

1878 · Pencil on paper

11 x 8 1/2 in. (27.9 x 21.6 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

View all 10 artworks →

Artwork sources (4)

10 published of 69 catalogued · 63 with image

The Met
6 published6 img
Cleveland Museum of Art
4 published4 img
+ 2 more sources · 59 catalogued, not yet published

Per-Artwork Provenance Chains (top 4)

4 entries · 1 sources

Design for United States Currency
1912 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Allegorical Female Figures
1912 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Tradition
1916 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Sketch
1912 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number

Record