Bringing Al Hirschfeld’s art to the Solowey Studio is very special to me. As many of you know, I spent thirteen years visiting Hirschfeld in his studio at least once a week to organize the archive of his career. We became quite close. I organized the first museum retrospective of his artwork, as well as the first exhibition that explored his art of the movies, which I put together for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and which subsequently toured internationally. I also wrote the best-selling companion book, Hirschfeld’s Hollywood. Although many know him for his drawings of the American Theatre, he got his start drawing films for studio publicity departments, and his first published caricatures were of film performers. When his first theatrical caricature appeared in December 1926, he was already a six yar veteran of films studio. We went through a lot together: the death of his wife Dolly Haas, the birth of my son, 9/11, a lawsuit with his gallery, and the announcement that a Broadway theatre was to be named in his honor. When the nonprofit Al Hirschfeld Foundation came into being by the terms of his will, I was the first hire, and I am now the Creative Director of the Foundation. He was a good friend and great supporter of me and my career, and like so many others, I had loved his art since I was child.
In 2003, we mounted a show titled “Side by Side” that explored how both Hirschfeld and Solowey saw shows on Broadway in the 1930s when their work literally appeared side by side in New York newspapers. It was a fascinating overview how two unique artists saw the shows that shaped the American Theatre. We are not remounting that show. This exhibition will show Hirschfeld’s incomparable portraits of performers and productions that defined American popular culture in the 20th century. From Duke Ellington to Liza Minnelli; from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel to Star Trek. This will be a combination of Hirschfeld’s ink on board drawings and his hand-signed limited edition prints that will need to be seen to be believed.
All sales of Hirschfeld art directly benefit the Al Hirschfeld Foundation’s mission which is “to promote interest in the theater and dramatic arts by supporting not-for-profit museums, libraries, theaters and similar cultural institutions” around the country. We have created an infrastructure where the overhead of the Foundation is almost non-existent, so that all funds raised go directly to its mission.
This is a special for me, and I think it will be for you. I hope you will visit.
