In February I wrote about the wall of portraits at the Society of Illustrators in New York, where each president of the Society was drawn by a prominent illustrator of the day.
Unlike typical portraits which are designed to flatter subjects who know little about art, the portraits on the walls at the Society were pictures of working artists, done by working artists, to be displayed in front of a judgmental audience of working artists.
Here is another assortment of drawings worth considering from the wall. Which are your favorites?
Personally, I'm crazy about Victor Juhasz's lively, observant drawing of Dennis Dittrich:
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| Dennis Dittrich portrayed by Victor Juhasz |
Juhasz drew his subject from life. Compare the vitality of his drawing with Norman Rockwell's cautious portrait of Wesley McKeown.
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| Wesley McKeown by Norman Rockwell |
Rockwell lent technical mastery to everything he touched, yet I think this portrait lacks the spirit of Juhasz's drawing.
Bob Peak's drawing below also strives for vitality, but I find his racing stripes an artificial way of achieving it (unlike Juhasz's drawing where every "loose" line serves a purpose).
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| Walter Hortens by Bob Peak |
I'm guessing that Diane Dillon's portrait by her husband and partner Leo is unadventuresome because he likes her just fine the way she is, and can't see that any experimentation or distortion is warranted.
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| Diane Dillon by Leo Dillon |
The talented Greg Manchess employed charcoal for these drawings of Berenson and Schultz:
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Richard J. Berenson by Gregg Manchess |
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Eileen Hedy Schultz by Greg Manchess |
Master of the pencil Paul Calle manages to combine sharp realism with a brisk look:
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| Doug Cramer by Paul Calle |
Last, here is a drawing of Shannon Stirnweiss by Dean Ellis:
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Shannon Stirnweis by Dean Ellis |
What do you think?
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