Artwork Details
40 x 50 in.
Accession NumberGift of the Penrod Society and the Martha Delzell Memorial Fund
CopyrightAmerican Painting and Sculpture 1800-1945
Color PaletteProvenance
Provenance
Acquired by the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 1973
Gallery Labels
Gallery Labels
Executed in a single day during the artist’s visit to Tarkington’s home in Maine, this portrait emphasizes the man and his defining instrument, his writing desk. Flagg creates a powerful image through thick brushstrokes, strong illumination, and the prevalence of eye-grabbing white.
Tarkington was often painted during his lifetime, but the informal setting and vibrant palette of Flagg’s interpretation dazzled him. He praised the painting in casual terms: “Darn ugly messy-faced chap sitting in great concentration at littered desk—summer clothes—author’s body slouching down inside ‘em—lazy body with almost vicious mental energy showing in the eyes. Homely as the feller is, the picture is beautiful….”
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