COLLECTION NAME:
The AMICA Library
mediaCollectionId
AMICO~1~1
The AMICA Library
Collection
true
AMICA ID:
WMAA.31.95
amicoid
WMAA.31.95
AMICA ID
false
AMICA Library Year:
2001
aly
2001
AMICA Library Year
false
Object Type:
Paintings
oty
Paintings
Object Type
false
Creator Name:
Bellows, George Wesley
crn
Bellows, George Wesley
Creator Name
false
Creator Role:
Artist
crr
Artist
Creator Role
false
Creator Dates/Places:
1882-1925
cdt
1882-1925
Creator Dates/Places
false
Gender:
M
cgn
M
Gender
false
Creator Name-CRT:
George Bellows
crt
George Bellows
Creator Name-CRT
false
Title:
Dempsey and Firpo
otn
Dempsey and Firpo
Title
false
Title Type:
Title
ott
Title
Title Type
false
View:
Full View
rid
Full View
View
false
Creation Date:
1924
oct
1924
Creation Date
false
Creation Start Date:
1924
ocs
1924
Creation Start Date
false
Creation End Date:
1924
oce
1924
Creation End Date
false
Materials and Techniques:
Oil on canvas
omd
Oil on canvas
Materials and Techniques
false
Dimensions:
51 x 63 1/4 in. (129.54 x 160.66 cm.)
met
51 x 63 1/4 in. (129.54 x 160.66 cm.)
Dimensions
false
Component Measured:
Object
mcm
Object
Component Measured
false
Measurement Dimension:
Height
med
Height
Measurement Dimension
false
Measurement Value:
129.54
mdv
129.54
Measurement Value
false
Measurement Unit:
cm
mdu
cm
Measurement Unit
false
Component Measured:
Object
mcm
Object
Component Measured
false
Measurement Dimension:
Width
med
Width
Measurement Dimension
false
Measurement Value:
160.66
mdv
160.66
Measurement Value
false
Measurement Unit:
cm
mdu
cm
Measurement Unit
false
Measurement Unit:
cm
mdu
cm
Measurement Unit
false
AMICA Contributor:
Whitney Museum of American Art
oon
Whitney Museum of American Art
AMICA Contributor
false
Owner Location:
New York, New York, USA
oop
New York, New York, USA
Owner Location
false
ID Number:
31.95
ooa
31.95
ID Number
false
Credit Line:
Purchase, with funds from Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney
ooc
Purchase, with funds from Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney
Credit Line
false
Rights:
orl
<a href="http://www.whitney.org/information/rights.shtml"target="_new">http://www.whitney.org/information/rights.shtml</a>
Rights
false
Context - Date:
1924 - 1924
cxt
1924 - 1924
Context - Date
false
Context - Person:
Bellows George
cxp
Bellows George
Context - Person
false
Context - Person:
Whitney Gertrude Vanderbilt
cxp
Whitney Gertrude Vanderbilt
Context - Person
false
Context:
Between 1907 and 1924, George Bellows used the prizefight as the subject of six major oil paintings and numerous related drawings and prints. Dempsey and Firpo was his final exploration of this theme. He remarked of the subject in general: 'I am just painting two men trying to kill each other.' Assigned to illustrate the fight for the New York Evening Journal, Bellows - and a crowd of 90,000 - attended the event of on September 14, 1923, at New York's Polo Grounds. Among the most famous matches of the century, the bout was short and dramatic. In the first of its two rounds, Dempsey, having knocked his Argentine challenger to the floor seven times, was himself sent through the ropes. As Bellows, sitting in the front row press area, described it: 'When Dempsey was knocked through the ropes he fell in my lap. I cursed him a bit and placed him carefully back in the ring with instructions to be of good cheer.' Although Dempsey went on to victory by a knockout in the second round, Bellows chose this earlier episode for the newspaper illustration (which never ran, owing to a printers' strike). A pair of prints, preparatory sketches, and this painting was made the following summer. According to his biographer, the artist's bald head can be seen at the extreme left, though recent scholarship suggests Bellows could be where he said he was, at the center, pushing Dempsey back into action. Only seven months after finishing Dempsey and Firpo, Bellows died at forty-two, at the height of his fame. The painting was acquired from the artist's widow, Emma, in 1931 for $18,500, the most expensive American work purchased by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney up to that time.
cxd
Between 1907 and 1924, George Bellows used the prizefight as the subject of six major oil paintings and numerous related drawings and prints. Dempsey and Firpo was his final exploration of this theme. He remarked of the subject in general: 'I am just painting two men trying to kill each other.' Assigned to illustrate the fight for the New York Evening Journal, Bellows - and a crowd of 90,000 - attended the event of on September 14, 1923, at New York's Polo Grounds. Among the most famous matches of the century, the bout was short and dramatic. In the first of its two rounds, Dempsey, having knocked his Argentine challenger to the floor seven times, was himself sent through the ropes. As Bellows, sitting in the front row press area, described it: 'When Dempsey was knocked through the ropes he fell in my lap. I cursed him a bit and placed him carefully back in the ring with instructions to be of good cheer.' Although Dempsey went on to victory by a knockout in the second round, Bellows chose this earlier episode for the newspaper illustration (which never ran, owing to a printers' strike). A pair of prints, preparatory sketches, and this painting was made the following summer. According to his biographer, the artist's bald head can be seen at the extreme left, though recent scholarship suggests Bellows could be where he said he was, at the center, pushing Dempsey back into action. Only seven months after finishing Dempsey and Firpo, Bellows died at forty-two, at the height of his fame. The painting was acquired from the artist's widow, Emma, in 1931 for $18,500, the most expensive American work purchased by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney up to that time.
Context
false
Context - Date:
1985
cxt
1985
Context - Date
false
Context - Person:
Patterson Sims
cxp
Patterson Sims
Context - Person
false
Context - Place:
Catalog: 'Whitney Museum of American Art: Selected Works from the Permanent Collection'
cxs
Catalog: 'Whitney Museum of American Art: Selected Works from the Permanent Collection'
Context - Place
false
Context - Place:
Publisher: Catalog: Whitney Museum of American Art
cxs
Publisher: Catalog: Whitney Museum of American Art
Context - Place
false
Exhibition History:
The Paintings of George Bellows
oeh
The Paintings of George Bellows
Exhibition History
false
Exhibition History:
(1) "American Art 1900-1940: A History Reconsidered"
oeh
(1) "American Art 1900-1940: A History Reconsidered"
Exhibition History
false
Exhibition History:
(2)American Art, 1900-1940: A History Reconsidered
oeh
(2)American Art, 1900-1940: A History Reconsidered
Exhibition History
false
Exhibition History:
"An American Story"
oeh
"An American Story"
Exhibition History
false
Exhibition History:
Leonard & Evelyn Lauder Galleries
oeh
Leonard & Evelyn Lauder Galleries
Exhibition History
false
Exhibition History:
The American Century: Art and Culture 1900-2000 (Part I)
oeh
The American Century: Art and Culture 1900-2000 (Part I)
Exhibition History
false
Exhibition History:
Highlights from the Permanent Collection: From Hopper to Mid-Century
oeh
Highlights from the Permanent Collection: From Hopper to Mid-Century
Exhibition History
false
Exhibition History:
George Bellows and His Circle at Woodstock
oeh
George Bellows and His Circle at Woodstock
Exhibition History
false
Related Multimedia Description:
Antenna Audio: Permanent Collection Tour
rmd
Antenna Audio: Permanent Collection Tour
Related Multimedia Description
false
Related Image Identifier Link:
WMAA.00377.tif
ril
WMAA.00377.tif
Related Image Identifier Link
false