PUBLIC FAVORITES
Few artists prefer portraiture to other forms of painting; very few excel at it. Portraits afford little opportunity for imagination or self-expression, but they require a full measure of two great qualities: clarity of observation and rendition. The public is nevertheless partial to portraits, especially those of women & children. The four reproduced on the opposite page are public favorites at four U.S. museums.
The Blue Boy, Thomas Gainsborough's most famed work, is the favorite at the Huntington Library and Art Gallery near Pasadena. It is a standout in the splendid $50 million collection put together between 1908 and 1927 by...
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