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Catalog Data

Artist:
Una Hanbury, 1904 - 9 Feb 1990  Search this
Sitter:
Rachel Louise Carson, 27 May 1907 - 14 Apr 1964  Search this
Medium:
Bronze
Dimensions:
With Base: 48.6 x 21 x 15.6cm (19 1/8 x 8 1/4 x 6 1/8")
Without Base: 28.3 x 21 x 15.6cm (11 1/8 x 8 1/4 x 6 1/8")
Base: 20.3 x 15.2 x 15.2cm (8 x 6 x 6")
Type:
Sculpture
Place:
United States\District of Columbia\Washington
Date:
1965
Exhibition Label:
Alarmed by the widespread use of chemical pesticides like DDT, Rachel Carson helped spark a mass movement for environmentalism with Silent Spring (1962). A forceful critique of the chemical industry and agribusiness, the bestselling book also faulted the government for allowing the use of such pesticides without considering their long-term effects. Carson insisted on the public’s right to know how they impacted ecosystems and human health. “If we are going to live so intimately with these chemicals— eating and drinking them, taking them into the very marrow of our bones,” she warned, “we had better know something about their nature and their power.”
Alarmada por el extendido uso de pesticidas químicos como el DDT, Rachel Carson contribuyó a encender la chispa de un movimiento ambientalista masivo con Primavera silenciosa (1962). El exitoso libro, una fuerte crítica a la industria química y la agroindustria, culpaba al gobierno de permitir el uso de tales pesticidas sin considerar sus efectos a largo plazo. Carson insistía en que el público tenía derecho a saber cómo impactaban estas prácticas los ecosistemas y la salud humana. “Si vamos a vivir tan íntimamente con estas sustancias, comiéndolas y bebiéndolas, asimilándolas hasta la médula de nuestros huesos”, advirtió, “será mejor que sepamos algo sobre su índole y su poder”.
Provenance:
Una Hanbury [1904-1990]; purchased NPG 1966
Topic:
Rachel Louise Carson: Female  Search this
Rachel Louise Carson: Literature\Writer\Scientific writer  Search this
Rachel Louise Carson: Society and Social Change\Reformer\Environmentalist  Search this
Rachel Louise Carson: Science and Technology\Scientist\Naturalist  Search this
Rachel Louise Carson: Science and Technology\Scientist\Biologist  Search this
Rachel Louise Carson: Science and Technology\Scientist\Biologist\Marine Biologist  Search this
Rachel Louise Carson: Presidential Medal of Freedom  Search this
Portrait  Search this
Credit Line:
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
Object number:
NPG.66.19
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
See more items in:
National Portrait Gallery Collection
Exhibition:
Forces of Nature: Voices that Shaped Environmentalism
On View:
NPG, North Gallery 220
Data Source:
National Portrait Gallery
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4a8f41103-d714-4711-9baf-f318d7e5da9f
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:npg_NPG.66.19