Object Details
- Artist
- Betsy Graves Reyneau, 6 Jun 1888 - 18 Oct 1964
- Sitter
- Richmond Barthé, 28 Jan 1901 - 6 Mar 1989
- Exhibition Label
- Born Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
- The Harmon Foundation, a philanthropic organization based in New York City and active from 1922 to 1967, included this portrait in its exhibition “Portraits of Outstanding Americans of Negro Origin.” To demonstrate its goal of social equality and document noteworthy African Americans’ contributions to the country, the foundation had sought portraits from an African American artist, Laura Wheeler Waring, and a Euro-American artist, Betsy Graves Reyneau. The exhibition toured the country for ten years.
- By 1946, sculptor Richmond Barthé was very well known in New York City. Reyneau depicted him in his studio with a figure of Jesus Christ titled Come Unto Me. When he completed the work in 1947, Barthé donated it to St. Jude’s Church in Montgomery, Alabama.
- Nacido en Bay St. Louis, Mississippi
- La Harmon Foundation, entidad filantrópica activa entre 1922 y 1967 con sede en Nueva York, incluyó este retrato en su exposición “Portraits of Outstanding Americans of Negro Origin”. A tono con sus aspiraciones de igualdad social y de documentar las vidas de afroamericanos notables, la fundación había encargado los retratos a una artista afroamericana, Laura Wheeler Waring, y a otra euroamericana, Betsy Graves Reyneau. La exposición viajó por la nación a lo largo de diez años.
- En 1946, el escultor Richmond Barthé era muy conocido en la ciudad de Nueva York. Reyneau lo pintó en su estudio, junto a una imagen de Cristo titulada Come Unto Me (Venid a Mí). Cuando terminó la escultura en 1947, Barthé la donó a la iglesia St. Jude en Montgomery, Alabama.
- Provenance
- Harmon Foundation; gift 1967 to NPG.
- Collection Description
- The Harmon Foundation, a philanthropic organization based in New York City (active 1922–1967), included this portrait in their exhibition Portraits of Outstanding Americans of Negro Origin, which opened at the Smithsonian in 1944 and documented noteworthy African Americans’ contributions to the country. Modeling their goal of social equality, the Harmon sought portraits from African American artist Laura Wheeler Waring and Euro-American artist Betsy Graves Reyneau. The two painters followed the conventional codes of academic portraiture, seeking to convey their sitters’ extraordinary accomplishments. This painting, along with a variety of educational materials, toured nation-wide for ten years, serving as a visual rebuttal to racism.
- La Harmon Foundation, entidad filantrópica con sede en la ciudad de Nueva York (activa entre 1922 y 1967), incluyó este retrato en Portraits of Outstanding Americans of Negro Origin (Retratos de estadounidenses destacados de origen negro), una exposición inaugurada en la Smithsonian en 1944 que documentó las aportaciones de afroamericanos notables al país. A tono con sus ideales de igualdad social, la fundación encargó retratos a la artista afroamericana Laura Wheeler Waring y a la euroamericana Betsy Graves Reyneau. Ambas adoptaron los códigos convencionales del retrato académico para comunicar en sus obras los logros extraordinarios de sus modelos. Esta pintura, junto con diversos materiales educativos, viajó por la nación durante diez años planteando una impugnación visual del racismo.
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of the Harmon Foundation
- 1946
- Object number
- NPG.67.77
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Copyright
- © Peter Edward Fayard
- Type
- Painting
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- Frame: 170.5 × 99.4 × 5.4cm (67 1/8 × 39 1/8 × 2 1/8")
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Location
- Currently not on view
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Interior
- Art implements
- Artwork\Sculpture\Statue
- Richmond Barthé: Male
- Richmond Barthé: Arts and Culture\Visual Arts\Artist\Sculptor
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.67.77
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm48280ee96-666e-44ec-baec-7378561ebc48
