Object Details
- Artist
- Raphael Soyer, 25 Dec 1899 - 4 Nov 1987
- Sitter
- Allen Ginsberg, 3 Jun 1926 - 5 Apr 1997
- Peter Orlovsky, 8 Jul 1933 - 30 May 2010
- Exhibition Label
- Born New York City
- Twentieth-century portrait painter Raphael Soyer continued to work in a realistic vein even as abstraction came to rule the art world. He was noted for his empathetic and sympathetic likenesses, especially of family and friends, such as the poet Allen Ginsberg. Soyer and Ginsberg were part of the post–World War II cultural scene in New York City, and they became friends after meeting in 1965. Ginsberg by then was famous as the author of “Howl”—the quintessential statement of postwar rebellion—and many subsequent works. Soyer signals Ginsberg’s poetic career by painting him holding a list that includes “Howl” and “Kaddish.” But Soyer really painted this dual portrait to commemorate the poet’s long relationship with Peter Orlovsky, with whom he lived and worked for nearly forty years.
- Nacido en la ciudad de New York
- Raphael Soyer, pintor retratista del siglo XX, continuó trabajando la vertiente realista incluso cuando la abstracción ocupó el trono en el mundo del arte. Soyer se distinguía por sus retratos afectuosos y simpáticos, sobre todo de familiares y amigos, como el poeta Allen Ginsberg. Ambos participaron en la escena cultural de posguerra en New York y entablaron amistad en 1965. Para entonces, Ginsberg ya era famoso por su poema “Howl”, paradigma del espíritu rebelde de la posguerra, y otros libros. En alusión a la carrera poética de Ginsberg, Soyer lo pinta sosteniendo una lista de títulos que incluye “Howl” y “Kaddish”. Pero el verdadero propósito de este retrato doble fue conmemorar la larga relación del poeta con Peter Orlovsky, su compañero de vida y trabajo durante casi cuarenta años.
- Provenance
- Mary Soyer, daughter of artist, New York; gift 2009 to NPG
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Mary Soyer
- 1980
- Object number
- NPG.2009.114
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Copyright
- © Estate of Raphael Soyer, courtesy of Forum Gallery, New York
- Type
- Painting
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- Stretcher: 101.6 x 101.6cm (40 x 40")
- Frame: 114.9 × 114.9 × 6.4cm (45 1/4 × 45 1/4 × 2 1/2")
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Location
- Currently not on view
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Interior
- Printed Material\Book
- Printed Material\Papers
- Allen Ginsberg: Male
- Allen Ginsberg: Arts & Culture\Literature\Writer\Poet
- Allen Ginsberg: Arts & Culture\Visual Arts\Artist\Photographer
- Allen Ginsberg: Arts & Culture\Journalism and Media\Journalist\Reporter\Newspaper
- Allen Ginsberg: Arts & Culture\Literature\Writer\Playwright
- Peter Orlovsky: Male
- Peter Orlovsky: Arts & Culture\Literature\Writer\Poet
- Peter Orlovsky: Arts & Culture\Visual Arts\Artist's model
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.2009.114
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4ccbaaa43-c456-4439-ab55-62d4cb4e63d1
