Skip to main content Smithsonian Institution

Catalog Data

Artist:
Elaine de Kooning, 12 Mar 1918 - 1 Feb 1989  Search this
Sitter:
Thomas B. Hess, 1920 - 12 Jul 1978  Search this
Medium:
Oil on Masonite
Dimensions:
Unspecified Element: 58.1 x 40 cm (22 7/8 x 15 3/4")
Frame: 72.1 × 51.8 × 4.4 cm (28 3/8 × 20 3/8 × 1 3/4")
Type:
Painting
Place:
United States\New York\Kings\New York
Date:
1956
Exhibition Label:
Like her portrait of Fairfield Porter, this painting of art critic and editor Thomas B. Hess (1920–1978) was based on a precisely dated drawing, which served as the starting point for this free and gestural painting. Elaine wrote, "some men sit all closed up—legs crossed, arms folded across the chest. Others are wide open." Her likeness of Hess, a mix of harsh yellows, greens, grays, and dark red lines, is an unusual example of her work from this time, in both the closed pose and the coloring. Hess described Elaine’s portraits as containing "meticulously observed and rendered faces [attached to] anatomies spun from bravura paint ribbons." Hess was a close friend as well as a colleague, and he had hired Elaine in 1948 to write reviews and then feature articles for ARTnews. By 1956, when this painting was made, he was championing her work as well as that of Willem, which he had promoted since the early 1950s.
Al igual que el retrato de Fairfield Porter, esta pintura del crítico de arte y editor Thomas B. Hess (1920–1978) se basa en un dibujo fechado que sirvió de base para esta obra gestual de trazos libres. Elaine escribe que “algunos hombres se sientan de manera muy reservada, con las piernas cruzadas y los brazos sobre el pecho. Otros son más extrovertidos”. Esta imagen de Hess, con su mezcla de fuertes amarillos, verdes, grises y líneas rojo oscuro, es un raro ejemplo del trabajo de la artista en esta época, tanto por la pose reservada como por el colorido. Hess decía que los retratos de Elaine tenían “rostros observados y representados minuciosamente, [adheridos a] cuerpos tejidos con bravura en cintas de pintura”. Hess, buen amigo y colega de Elaine, la contrató en 1948 para escribir reseñas y luego artículos en ARTnews. Ya para 1956, año de esta pintura, él estaba promoviendo su obra artística, como lo había hecho con la de Willem desde principios de la década.
Provenance:
The artist; her estate; (Washburn Gallery, New York); purchased 1995 NPG
Topic:
Thomas B. Hess: Male  Search this
Thomas B. Hess: Literature\Writer  Search this
Thomas B. Hess: Visual Arts\Art critic  Search this
Thomas B. Hess: Journalism and Media\Magazine editor  Search this
Portrait  Search this
Credit Line:
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
Object number:
NPG.95.8
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
See more items in:
National Portrait Gallery Collection
Location:
Currently not on view
Data Source:
National Portrait Gallery
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4bf6ec8dc-d36e-4352-86f8-900b43d918a0
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:npg_NPG.95.8