On December 6, 2018, the Union Pacific 4141 engine led the President George H.W. Bush funeral train from Houston, TX to College Station, where the former president was laid to rest alongside his beloved wife, former First Lady Barbara P. Bush, and their daughter, Robin.
On that solemn day, admirers from across the globe paid their respects to our 41st President as they lined the 70-mile track to his final destination. It was an emotional day filled with pride, patriotism, and remembrance.
“He has left such a fantastic legacy that’s going to continue to make a difference and touch people’s lives,” said Benjamin Knox, the artist behind the 16-foot long painting that now hangs in the atrium of the Robert H. ’50 and Judy Ley Allen Building.
“He has left such a fantastic legacy that’s going to continue to make a difference and touch people’s lives.”
Benjamin Knox
The composition, entitled The Ride Home, draws inspiration from a photograph taken of President Bush’s last journey home to College Station. The silver Union Pacific 4141 engine, named in reference President Bush’s position as the United States’ 41st president, pulls the train. The funeral carriage, emblazoned with the American flag, follows several cars behind. Cowboys on chestnut horses pause in a wheat field to watch the train pass, doffing their hats in respect.
“To me that picture was Texas. It was respect. It was a president coming home,” said Mark Welsh, dean of the Bush School of Government and Public Service.
“It is the final ride home for President Bush,” said Knox. “Home evokes a sense of what’s important. It’s memorable. For us, home is Aggieland.”
Infused with symbolism that signifies Bush as both the 41st president and a Texan, the panoramic painting is framed in such a way to draw the viewer’s eye across the full composition. The funeral car is depicted with an open door that allows viewers to see inside.
“You will see President Bush there and the navy serviceman standing, and that will evoke the importance of what you can do with your life and what you can do to make a difference,” said Knox.
“It’s a phenomenal painting. It’s the ride home. His home now is behind the Bush Center complex,” said Welsh.
Benjamin Knox ’90 is a nationally-acclaimed artist, Texas A&M professor and Texas native. His work has been featured in universities, museums, hotels, and the homes of high-profile individuals throughout the United States. In 1997, Knox was designated the official artist for the George Bush Presidential Library and Museum. President Bush called him a “very fine artist”.
