Skip to main content

Search

My Visit  Donate
Home Smithsonian Institution

Site Navigation

  • Visit
    • Hours and Locations
    • Entry and Guidelines
    • Mall Museum Map
    • Dining
    • Shopping
    • Accessibility
    • Group Visits
  • What's On
    • Exhibitions
      • Current Exhibitions
      • Upcoming
      • Past Exhibitions
      • Online Exhibitions
    • Today's Events
    • Online Events
    • All Events
    • IMAX & Planetarium
  • Explore
    • Art & Design
    • History & Culture
    • Science & Conservation
    • Collections
      • Open Access
      • Smithsonian Snapshot
    • Research Resources
      • Libraries
      • Archives
        • Smithsonian Institution Archives
        • Air and Space Museum
        • Anacostia Community Museum
        • American Art Museum
        • Archives of American Art
        • Archives of American Gardens
        • American History Museum
        • American Indian Museum
        • Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, African Art
        • Freer and Sackler Archives
        • Hirshhorn Archive
        • National Anthropological Archives
        • National Portrait Gallery
        • Ralph Rinzler Archives, Folklife
        • Libraries' Special Collections
    • Blogs
    • Podcasts
    • Mobile Apps
  • Learn
    • For Kids and Teens
    • For Educators
      • Resources
      • Field Trips
      • Professional Development
      • Events
    • Youth Programs
    • Fellowships and Internships
  • Get Involved
    • Volunteer
      • Behind-the-Scenes
      • Digital Volunteers
      • Smithsonian Call Center
      • Visitor Information Specialist
      • Docent Programs
    • Citizen Science
    • Work with Us
      • Office of Human Resources
        • Working Here
        • Employee Benefits
        • Job Opportunities
        • How to Apply
        • Job Seekers with Disabilities
        • Frequently Asked Questions
        • SI Civil Program
        • Contact Us
      • Affiliations
      • Global Partners
  • Support
    • About Membership
    • Become a Member
    • Renew Your Membership
    • Make a Gift
  • About
    • Museums and Zoo
    • Research Centers
    • Cultural Centers
    • Education
    • Our Organization
      • Leadership
        • Secretary Bunch
        • Advancement
        • Communications
        • Administration
        • Education
        • Museums and Culture
        • Science and Research
      • Board of Regents
        • Members
        • Committees
        • Reading Room
        • Bylaws, Policies and Procedures
        • Contact
        • Schedules and Agendas
        • Meeting Minutes
        • Actions
        • Webcasts
      • General Counsel
        • Legal History
        • Internships
        • Records Requests
          • Records Request Reading Room
        • Tort Claim
        • Subpoenas & Testimonies
        • Events
      • Equal Employment Office
        • EEO Complaint Process
        • Individuals with Disabilities
        • Special Emphasis Program
        • Supplier Diversity Program
          • Doing Business with Us
          • Policies and Procedures
          • Additional Resources
          • Goals and Accomplishments
      • Sponsored Projects
        • Policies
          • Animal Care and Use
          • Human Research
        • Reports
        • Internships
    • Reports and Plans
      • Annual Reports
      • Metrics Dashboard
        • Dashboard Home
        • Virtual Smithsonian
        • Public Engagement
        • National Collections
        • Research
        • People & Operations
        • One Smithsonian
      • Strategic Plan
    • Newsdesk
      • News Releases
      • Media Contacts
      • Photos and Video
      • Media Kits
      • Fact Sheets
      • Visitor Stats
      • Secretary and Admin Bios
      • Filming Requests

Flannery O'Connor

National Portrait Gallery

Addthis Share Tools

    • Print

Object Details

Artist
Joseph Reshower, 6 Jul 1921 - 1 Jan 2006
Sitter
Flannery O'Connor, 25 Mar 1925 - 3 Aug 1964
Exhibition Label
Born Savannah, Georgia
Mary Flannery O’Connor dropped her first name when she published Wise Blood (1952). Shortly thereafter, she earned her master’s degree in creative writing at the University of Iowa. Her first collection of stories was A Good Man Is Hard to Find (1955); her second, Everything That Rises Must Converge, was published posthumously in 1965. Most of O’Connor’s novels and short stories focused on spiritual and religious journeys taken by morally compromised individuals placed in unsettling scenarios. “I have found that violence is strangely capable of returning my characters to reality and preparing them to accept their moment of grace,” she once explained. “Their heads are so hard that almost nothing else will work.”
This portrait of the author by the Atlanta-based photographer Joseph Reshower appeared on the book jacket for O’Connor’s The Complete Stories. Published several years after her death, the anthology received the National Book Award in 1972.
Nacida en Savannah, Georgia
Mary Flannery O’Connor decidió usar solamente sus apellidos desde que publicó Sangre sabia (1952). Poco después completó su maestría en escritura creativa en la Universidad de Iowa. Su primer libro de cuentos fue Un hombre bueno es difícil de encontrar (1955); el segundo, Todo lo que sube converge, se publicó póstumamente en 1965. La mayoría de los cuentos y novelas de O’Connor describen el trayecto espiritual o religioso de personas con conflictos morales en circunstancias difíciles. “He descubierto que, extrañamente, la violencia tiene el don de devolver a mis personajes a la realidad y prepararlos para aceptar su momento de gracia”, explicó. “Son tan obstinados que prácticamente nada más funciona”.
Este retrato tomado por Joseph Reshower, fotógrafo radicado en Atlanta, apareció en la sobrecubierta de los Cuentos completos de O’Connor. Publicada varios años después de su muerte, la antología recibió el Premio Nacional del Libro en 1972.
Credit Line
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; acquired through a partial gift by John Daniel Reaves
1961
Object number
NPG.2012.41
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Copyright
© Estate of Joseph Reshower De Casseres/PCAphoto.com.
Type
Photograph
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dimensions
Image/Sheet: 17.8 x 18.5 cm (7 x 7 5/16")
Mount: 30.2 x 26.6 cm (11 7/8 x 10 1/2")
See more items in
National Portrait Gallery Collection
National Portrait Gallery
Topic
Costume\Dress Accessory\Eyeglasses
Flannery O'Connor: Female
Flannery O'Connor: Literature\Writer
Flannery O'Connor: National Book Award
Portrait
Record ID
npg_NPG.2012.41
Metadata Usage (text)
Usage conditions apply
GUID (Link to Original Record)
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4b778f603-cd70-473d-85b9-aecf4ac593b6

Related Content

  • American Women Writers

  • Explore America: Georgia

  • Irish American History and Heritage

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.
View manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Footer logo

Link to homepage

Footer navigation

  • Contact Us
  • Press Room
  • Human Resources
  • Host Your Event
  • Access Smithsonian
  • EEO & Supplier Diversity
  • Inspector General
  • Records Requests
  • Privacy
  • Terms of Use

Social media links

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Email signup form

Email powered by BlackBaud (Privacy Policy, Terms of Use)
Back to Top