Alice Neel: Elizabeth, 1984

Alice Neel:
Elizabeth, 1984

Alice Neel (1900–1984) is widely regarded as one of the foremost American artists of the twentieth century. While the avant-garde of the 1940s and 1950s renounced figuration, Neel developed her signature approach by creating daringly honest paintings of the people around her.  

Neel always worked from life and memory, and her ability to depict people with unfazed accuracy, honesty, and compassion displays itself throughout her canvases. Calling herself a “collector of souls,” Neel is acclaimed for not only capturing the truth of the individual but also reflecting the era in which she lived.