More On Presidential Portraiture
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Nine Great Twentieth Century Examples
A Second Follow-Up
To The Wall Street Journal
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George W. Bush
Robert Alexander Anderson.
The Yale Club, New York.
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Robert Alexander Anderson,
in his Yale Club portrayal of President
George W. Bush, gives us an intimate
view of an approachable, friendly
man by using the interior of the President's
home in Crawford, Texas, and an easygoing,
informal pose. However, the President
is attired in a dark business suit
which contrasts handsomely with the
at-home setting. Both head and hands
are rendered with consummate skill.
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These nine examples, covering more than a century
from 1899 through 2004, illustrate the continuing
desire of Presidential portraitists to present
their illustrious subjects as appealing human
beings, rather than as historic wielders of
power, with an end result sharply differing
from the early beginnings of this genre.
JOHN HOWARD SANDEN
New York
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