Pictures of People

By Calvin Tomkins
Issue: Oct 6

In this article, Tomkins discusses the portrait paintings of Elizabeth Peyton (though she calls them "pictures of people" instead).

Peyton often uses her friends or celebrities as subjects, as in her first big NY show which focused on paintings and drawings of Kurt Cobain. Her work is often described as personal, and her paintings exude a sense of familiarity with the subject, even when she does not know them (as is the case with her series on the European monarchy).

Personally, I didn't used to like her, but like Tomkins, and maybe because of him and this article, she is growing on me. Who knows, she might grow on the Presidential-elect's family, too. Her portrait of Michelle and Sasha Obama is the latest addition to her New Museum show and is up now.