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Story by Jack Foley
A CELEBRATION
of Americans and American history through portraits from the painting and
photographic collections of the National Portrait Gallery in Washington,
DC can currently be viewed at the National Portrait Gallery (NPG) until January
12, 2003.
Focussing on the lives of more than 150 men and women who have shaped American
history, Americans represents a rich selection of American heroes,
writers, statesmen, inventors, educators, musicians, artists and scientists
with sitters ranging from Benjamin Franklin and Henry James, to Marilyn Monroe
and Michael Jackson. The National Portrait Gallery, London, is the only European
venue for this outstanding exhibition.
Americans brings together 70 paintings and 58 photographs dating from the
1720s to the 1990s. Some portraits include details that tell visitors about
the sitter's accomplishments at first glance, while others benefit from insights
offered in contemporary descriptions and four mini-documentary films produced
and provided by The Biography® Channel, as part of its support of the
exhibition.
Curated by NPG Washington's Dr Carolyn Kinder Carr, Deputy Director and Chief
Curator, and Dr Ellen G. Miles, Curator of Painting and Sculpture, the exhibition
includes portraits in various styles and technique, from the sophisticated
paintings of John Singer Sargent and the photographs of Richard Avedon, to
work by self-taught artists such as Thomas Badger and William Elwell. Together,
these portraits comprise an unparalleled overview of the contribution that
individuals have made to American politics, society and culture.
The exhibition will be divided into sections - Independence, New Americans,
Freedom, A Social World, Americans Abroad, Men of Letters and 20th Century
Performing Arts.
Artists, such as John Singleton Copley, James McNeill Whistler, Mary Cassatt
and Alice Neel, and writers, including Edith Wharton, Mark Twain and John
Updike, are represented alongside other notable Americans such as Sequoyah,
Davy Crockett, Tallulah Bankhead, George Gershwin and Lena Horne.
An exceptional selection of photographs, only included in the London showing
of the exhibition, represents, amongst others, legendary American entertainers
including Ingrid Bergman, Spencer Tracy, Lucille Ball, Leonard Bernstein,
Audrey Hepburn, Louis Armstrong and Bill Cosby.
The
portrait tradition in the United States of America is richly textured, like
the multi-faceted historical narrative it reflects. The paintings and photographs
in this exhibition suggest the diverse range of individuals who have shaped
the American experience, and introduce the stylistic variety characteristic
of portraits of Americans.
A fully-illustrated catalogue accompanies the exhibition with a preface by
John Updike and an introductory essay by Dr Carolyn Kinder Carr priced £12.95
(paperback). Additionally, a large-format catalogue of the paintings in the
exhibition will be available priced £30 (paperback).
National Portrait Gallery, St Martin's Place, London WC2H OHE. Tel: 020 7306
0055. Opening times: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday: 10am -
6pm; Late Opening Thursday, Friday: 10am - 9pm; Recorded information: 020
7312 2463; Wolfson Gallery & Room 41. Admission £6, concessions
£4
GUIDE TO PICTURES: Mary Cassat by Edgar Degas, c. 1880-84, National
Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution (main picture)
Louis Armstrong by Lisette Model, c. 1956, National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian
Institution © Lisette Model Foundation Inc (1983)
RELATED LINKS: Click here for the NPG website...