Portrait of Thomas Eakins, Leonard Baskin | Mia

Portrait of Thomas Eakins, Leonard Baskin — Portrait of Thomas Eakins, 1965
Leonard Baskin
Color woodcut on Japan paper
Gift of Mrs. Mary Begley P.70.102
Not on View
Leonard Baskin portrayed Thomas Eakins (1844–1916) six times; this monumental woodcut is the largest of the group. Baskin admiringly wrote of the American artist: "I venerate Thomas Eakins, America’s greatest painter. . . . It is not the paintings, despite the Rembrandtesque grandeur of their realism, that lifts Eakins apart; it is rather the perceptible actuality of his indomitable spirit, as he moved through his inhospitable world. . . . His forbearance was stoutly dignified at the braying of prurient prudes and he held fast against the onslaughts of privileged philistinism." Eakins was a controversial figure; his now famous painting of an anatomical dissection, "The Gross Clinic" scandalized Philadelphia for its bloody realism and was rejected by exhibition jury for the city's centennial. His teaching career at the Pennsylvania Academy of Art was also rocky. He undressed in front of a female student to give an impromptu lesson about the body, and he was ultimately forced to resign after removing the loin cloth from a male nude model in a drawng class attended by both men and women. Eakin's reputation as one of the most importance American artists of his era was only recognized decades after he died.

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Details

Title: Portrait of Thomas Eakins
Dated: 1965
Artist: Leonard Baskin
Nationality: American
Artist Life: 1922–2000
Role: Artist
Gallery: Not on View
Department: Arts of the Americas
Dimension: 31 7/8 x 23 5/8 in. (80.96 x 60.01 cm) (image)33 1/4 x 24 1/16 in. (84.46 x 61.12 cm) (sheet)
Credit: Gift of Mrs. Mary Begley
Accession Number: P.70.102
Medium: Color woodcut on Japan paper
Country: United States
Century: 20th century
Provenance: Mary Begley, New York; given to MIA, 1970.
Rights: © Estate of Leonard Baskin
In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
Classification: Prints
Object Name: Print
Catalogue Raisonne: F&O. 484
Wikipedia: Cite this information
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Curator Approved: This record is from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator, so may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.

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© Estate of Leonard Baskin