Philip Pearlstein’s People, Places, Things

Philip Pearlstein (American, born 1924), Two Models with Four Whirly-Gigs, Bouncy Duck and Locomotive, 2008, oil on canvas. Private Collection. Courtesy of the Betty Cuningham Gallery

Museum of Fine Arts – St. Petersburg

By Suzanne Cohen

This exhibition is the most comprehensive retrospective of Philip Pearlstein, gathering together more than 60 paintings, drawings and prints. The works in the exposition, many of which are virtually unknown or have been exhibited very little outside of New York, reveal his unique way of approaching realism, and reinforce his standing in the history of American art. The exhibition pays homage to Pearlstein, who, nearing his 90^th birthday, continues to demonstrate his undeniable skill. Born in Pittsburgh in 1924, Pearlstein won the 1941 Scholastic Art Award national high school competition for his Merry-Go-Round of 1940. This work is precisely one of the prominent pieces in this exposition. Most notable in this retrospective are his portraits; he created more than 160 portraits, both of his acquaintances and famous people such as Henry Kissinger.

His method of representing nudes is very interesting because he does not approach the subjects to capture their beauty, but to capture their imperfections and humanity. Many of his portraits constitute scenes in which one can feel a contained tension, where the relationship among protagonists is suggested by the structure of the composition and the poses they assume. The exhibition also includes examples of his landscapes and his paintings of famous historic monuments.

Through June 16, 2013.