Bill Shoemaker
Object Details
- Artist
- Zbigniew Nyczak, born 1955
- Sitter
- William Lee Shoemaker, 19 Aug 1931 - 12 Oct 2003
- Exhibition Label
- Born Fabens, Texas
- Only four feet, eleven inches tall and weighing just ninety-eight pounds, Bill Shoemaker was one of horse racing’s smallest and lightest jockeys; he was also one of the most successful riders in the history of the sport. During a career that spanned four decades, Shoemaker tallied more than 40,000 starts and 8,833 winning rides, with repeat victories in the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and the Belmont Stakes. Just twenty-three when he won the derby crown in 1955, Shoemaker was fifty-four when he rode to his fourth and final derby victory in 1986, atop Ferdinand. Unlike some jockeys who whipped and harried their mounts to the finish line, “The Shoe” was admired for his ability to guide his horses through his skillful use of the reins and bit. As a contemporary observed, “If one needed the blueprint for the perfect jockey, [Shoemaker] would be it.”
- Provenance
- Commissioned by the Shoemaker Foundation, Inglewood, Calif.; gift 1996 to NPG
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Zbigniew Nyczak and the Shoemaker Foundation
- 1994
- Object number
- NPG.96.11
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Copyright
- © Zbigniew Nyczak
- Type
- Painting
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- Stretcher: 61 x 91.4 x 1.9cm (24 x 36 x 3/4")
- Frame: 87 x 117.2 x 6.4cm (34 1/4 x 46 1/8 x 2 1/2")
- Place
- United States\California
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Exhibition
- NPG Mezzanine: 20th and 21st Century Americans
- On View
- NPG, South Gallery 342 Mezzanine
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Nature & Environment\Animal\Horse
- Equipment\Sports Equipment\Equestrian Gear\Riding Crop
- Costume\Dress Accessory\Neckwear\Tie\Bowtie
- Exterior\Sports arena\Racetrack
- Costume\Headgear\Hat\Cap\Jockey cap
- William Lee Shoemaker: Male
- William Lee Shoemaker: Sports\Athlete\Equestrian\Jockey
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.96.11
- Metadata Usage (text)
- Usage conditions apply
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4f26ba671-2358-41d2-8c24-69b3f7c26680
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