3614084 John Brown, 1939 (oil on canvas) by Curry, John Steuart (1897-1946); 175.3 x 114.3 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA; (add.info.: Large study for a mural in the rotunda of the Kansas State Capitol. John Brown (1800-60) was a white American abolitionist who believed armed insurrection was the only way to overthrow slavery in the United States. He was hung for leading a raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia in 1859 intended to encourage a slave revolt, becoming a hero of the American Civil War (1861-65)); American, out of copyright.