Artist:
Al Hirschfeld
(American, 1903 - 2003)
Unlikely Casting
Alternate Title(s):The Odd Couple
Medium: Ink on board
Date: 1965
Dimensions:
25 1/4 × 20 in. (64.1 × 50.8 cm)
Accession number: 87.8.1
Copyright: © The Al Hirschfeld Foundation. www.AlHirschfeldFoundation.org
Label Copy:
Al Hirschfeld is considered America's foremost performing arts caricaturist and illustrator, covering the New York theater scene for more than sixty years. His eloquent line drawings capture the essence of character and spark of personality of his famous subjects. Hirschfeld is also known for hiding his daughter’s name, "Nina," in more than one place within drawings. Hirschfeld was a frequent contributor to the theatrical journal Playbill. His "Unlikely Casting Series," for the magazine humorously imagines actors in roles they would never play, such as seen in this drawing with Peter Ustinov and Boris Karloff as main characters for the play The Odd Couple.
Al Hirschfeld is considered America's foremost performing arts caricaturist and illustrator, covering the New York theater scene for more than sixty years. His eloquent line drawings capture the essence of character and spark of personality of his famous subjects. Hirschfeld is also known for hiding his daughter’s name, "Nina," in more than one place within drawings. Hirschfeld was a frequent contributor to the theatrical journal Playbill. His "Unlikely Casting Series," for the magazine humorously imagines actors in roles they would never play, such as seen in this drawing with Peter Ustinov and Boris Karloff as main characters for the play The Odd Couple.
Curatorial RemarksFor over 70 years, Al Hirschfeld has been famous for exuberant pen and ink line drawings that brilliantly characterize leading performers of stage and cinema. His drawings, which have appeared regularly in "The New York Times" since 1929, employ sinuous lines to capture the stage presence and personality of his subjects.
Born in St. Louis, he demonstrated his talent early and following a family move to New York City, studied painting and sculpture at the Art Students League. During a trip to Bali in 1931 he noted that the glaring brightness of the sun bleached out color and flattened forms, leaving only outline to define shapes. From that experience he chose to describe form and character in line, a skill which he has continued to refine ever since.
Hirschfeld's work is frequently humorous and his series of drawings called "Unlikely Castings" created for "Playbill," a theatrical publication, exemplifies his comic wit. The museum's drawing, "The Odd Couple," which features Peter Ustinov and Boris Karloff as an ungainly pairing, is part of this series.
Born in St. Louis, he demonstrated his talent early and following a family move to New York City, studied painting and sculpture at the Art Students League. During a trip to Bali in 1931 he noted that the glaring brightness of the sun bleached out color and flattened forms, leaving only outline to define shapes. From that experience he chose to describe form and character in line, a skill which he has continued to refine ever since.
Hirschfeld's work is frequently humorous and his series of drawings called "Unlikely Castings" created for "Playbill," a theatrical publication, exemplifies his comic wit. The museum's drawing, "The Odd Couple," which features Peter Ustinov and Boris Karloff as an ungainly pairing, is part of this series.