Object Details
- Artist
- Everett Raymond Kinstler, 5 Aug 1926 - 26 May 2019
- Sitter
- Katharine Hepburn, 12 May 1907 - 29 Jun 2003
- Exhibition Label
- Born Hartford, Connecticut
- Katharine Hepburn sported a stylized personality and headstrong independence that announced a new kind of female presence in Hollywood’s heyday. She was an instant screen success, winning the first of her record four Best Actress Oscars in 1933 for Morning Glory and making such popular films as Little Women (1933). But subsequent choices were poorly received by critics and audiences, and by 1938 she was labeled “box-office poison.”
- The Philadelphia Story (1940) revived her career, and she never again faltered. She co-starred with Humphrey Bogart in The African Queen (1951) and partnered in nine films with Spencer Tracy, winning an Oscar for Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967). She also won for The Lion in Winter (1968) and On Golden Pond (1981). Her receipt of four Best Actress Oscars is a feat that remains unequaled today. This portrait by her friend Everett Raymond Kinstler was said to be her favorite.
- Nacida en Hartford, Connecticut
- La sofisticada personalidad y terca independencia de Katharine Hepburn inauguraron un nuevo tipo de presencia femenina en la época dorada de Hollywood. Su éxito en el cine fue instantáneo, como lo demuestran el primero de sus insólitos cuatro Oscares de actuación por Morning Glory en 1933 y la popularidad de sus películas como Little Women (1933). Sin embargo, sus actuaciones subsiguientes no fueron bien recibidas por la crítica ni el público, y ya para 1938 se la consideraba “veneno de taquilla”.
- Su carrera revivió en 1940 con Philadelpia Story, y ya no volvió a descarrilarse. Junto a Humphrey Bogart protagonizó The African Queen (1951) y compartió cartelera con Spencer Tracy en nueve películas, entre ellas Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967), por la cual ganó otro Oscar. También recibió este premio por The Lion in Winter (1968) y On Golden Pond (1981). Su récord de cuatro Oscares como mejor actriz permanece intacto hasta hoy. Se dice que este retrato, realizado por su amigo Everett Raymond Kinstler, era su favorito.
- Provenance
- The artist; gift 2003 NPG
- Credit Line
- National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Everett Raymond Kinstler
- 1982
- Object number
- NPG.2003.41
- Restrictions & Rights
- Usage conditions apply
- Type
- Painting
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- Stretcher: 117.5 x 111.4 x 3.8cm (46 1/4 x 43 7/8 x 1 1/2")
- Frame: 121 x 115.6 x 7.6cm (47 5/8 x 45 1/2 x 3")
- Place
- United States\New York\Kings\New York
- See more items in
- National Portrait Gallery Collection
- Exhibition
- 20th Century Americans: 1960-2000
- On View
- NPG, South Gallery 342
- National Portrait Gallery
- Topic
- Exterior
- Equipment\Smoking Implements\Cigarette
- Katharine Hepburn: Female
- Katharine Hepburn: Arts and Culture\Literature\Writer
- Katharine Hepburn: Arts and Culture\Performing Arts\Film\Movie actor
- Katharine Hepburn: Performing arts awards\Academy Award
- Portrait
- Record ID
- npg_NPG.2003.41
- GUID (Link to Original Record)
- http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm49ec48def-c4cb-4ba0-9b44-93e00f215def
