Baseball Players
Date1953
MediumOil on canvas mounted on board
DimensionsSight: 17 5/8 × 23 9/16 inches (44.8 × 59.8 cm)
Framed: 24 9/16 × 30 9/16 × 2 inches (62.4 × 77.6 × 5.1 cm)
Credit LineGallery exchange.
Object number1965.6
Copyright© Elaine de Kooning Trust.
The images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextElaine de Kooning was an influential writer, teacher, and painter concerned with figure and portraiture. She embraced more historically masculine themes of the mid 20th century, such as sports, in her work; through her subject matter and pursuits, she made a big impact in the male-dominated Abstract Expressionist era. She lived and studied in New York where, in the mid 1930s, she met fellow artist Willem de Kooning, whom she married in 1943. Elaine De Kooning helped to shape the debate about Abstract Expressionism through her relationship with art critics such as Harold Rosenberg and was a correspondent for Art News.
During the 1950s, her work often depicted sports figures painted from newspaper photographs. De Kooning was highly conscious of the physical presence and dynamism of the human figure. 'Baseball Players' was painted in 1953, during a period when de Kooning had been invited to travel and paint two professional baseball teams, the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Yankees. Her lively brushstrokes capture the dramatic movements and gestures of the players.
In the 1950s, television changed American lives in irreversible ways: People were able to watch sports, politics, and world news from the comfort of their own homes. In this particular work, the player is believed to be Philadelphia Phillies catcher Stan Lopata, who wore #29 for the Phillies from 1948–59.
