During the 1930s, artists — many of them employed by New Deal agencies — painted thousands of murals depicting the variety of American life. These murals often appeared in public buildings. The mural shown here, by Missouri-born artist Thomas Hart Benton, illustrates the seductive pleasures and the spirit to be found in American cities. © AXA Financial, Inc. Thomas Hart Benton, City Activities with Subway, from America Today, 1930. Distemper and egg tempera on gessoed linen with oil glaze 92 x 134½”. Collection of AXA Financial, Inc., through its subsidiary, The Equitable Life Assurance Society of the U.S.