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David Lynch

National Portrait Gallery

Object Details

Artist
Richard Ansett, born 1966
Sitter
David Lynch, 20 Jan 1946 - 16 Jan 2025
Exhibition Label
Born Missoula, Montana
In movies such as Eraserhead (1977), The Elephant Man (1980), and Blue Velvet (1986), David Lynch established himself as one of the most original and controversial directors of his generation. He probed the dark underside of small-town America as well as the country’s urban centers, creating films whose visual appearance and narrative structure challenged established conventions. Eccentric characters, eerie settings, and dreamlike—often nightmarish—sequences figure prominently in much of his work. The British photographer Richard Ansett alludes to Lynch’s surrealist tendencies in this portrait, taken atop the Dorchester Hotel in London.
Inspired by the films of Stanley Kubrick and the paintings of Francis Bacon, Lynch blurred genres and mediums. He is perhaps best remembered for his television show Twin Peaks (1990–91), which received fourteen Emmy nominations, and his neo-noir film Mulholland Drive (2001). In 2019, Lynch received an honorary Academy Award.
Credit Line
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
1999 (printed 2006)
Object number
NPG.2007.183
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Copyright
© Richard Ansett
Type
Photograph
Medium
C-type print
Dimensions
Image: 58.4 x 48.2cm (23 x 19")
Sheet: 61 x 50.7cm (24 x 19 15/16")
Mat: 81.3 x 66cm (32 x 26")
See more items in
National Portrait Gallery Collection
Location
Currently not on view
National Portrait Gallery
Topic
Equipment\Umbrella
Artwork\Sculpture\Statue
David Lynch: Male
David Lynch: Arts and Culture\Performing Arts\Film\Film director
David Lynch: Arts and Culture\Performing Arts\Film\Film producer
David Lynch: Arts and Culture\Literature\Writer\Screenwriter
Portrait
Record ID
npg_NPG.2007.183
Metadata Usage (text)
Usage conditions apply
GUID (Link to Original Record)
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm47eb268c3-9121-4be5-9d73-6645466f4f08

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There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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