Beauford's Portraits
In "A Narrative of Belonging: The Art of Beauford Delaney and Glenn Ligon," Dr. Catherine St. John writes:
When I reread this excerpt from Dr. St. John's paper, I was inspired to look at images of dozens of portraits that Beauford painted during his lifetime. I bring you several below; these have not been displayed previously on the Les Amis blog.
Untitled (Portrait of a Young Woman)
(1934) Color pastels
Private collection
Michael Fraenkel
(1946) Drawing
From Death, A Literary Quarterly Vol 1, No. 1 (Summer 1946)
Marian Anderson
(1965) Oil on Canvas
©2001 Malcolm Varon
Portrait of Bernard Hassell
(ca 1971) Oil on Canvas
Estate of Beauford Delaney
Ella Fitzgerald
(1968) Oil on canvas
The Walter O. Evans Collection of African American Art
Beauford painted pastel portraits of Duke Ellington and W.E.B. DuBois, but I have never found images of them. If any of you have seen these portraits, or images of them, please let me know by leaving a comment below!
It is the expressive single-figure realist portrait that first brought Beauford Delaney critical notice and a measure of success. He loved people. He continued the art of portraiture without interruption throughout his career. His portraits tell a story that is human and real, saying as much about him as those he painted.
When I reread this excerpt from Dr. St. John's paper, I was inspired to look at images of dozens of portraits that Beauford painted during his lifetime. I bring you several below; these have not been displayed previously on the Les Amis blog.
(1934) Color pastels
Private collection
(1946) Drawing
From Death, A Literary Quarterly Vol 1, No. 1 (Summer 1946)
(1965) Oil on Canvas
©2001 Malcolm Varon
(ca 1971) Oil on Canvas
Estate of Beauford Delaney
(1968) Oil on canvas
The Walter O. Evans Collection of African American Art
Beauford painted pastel portraits of Duke Ellington and W.E.B. DuBois, but I have never found images of them. If any of you have seen these portraits, or images of them, please let me know by leaving a comment below!