The Old Lion
Datec. 1872
Artist
Abbott Handerson Thayer
(American painter, 1849–1921)
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions25 1/4 × 36 in. (64.1 × 91.4 cm)
frame: 36 1/4 x 47 1/2 in. (92.1 x 120.7 cm)
frame: 36 1/4 x 47 1/2 in. (92.1 x 120.7 cm)
Credit LineSamuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1935
Object number1935-33
On View
On viewCollections
ClassificationsPAINTING
Label TextAbbott Thayer was amateur naturalist since childhood, and it was his successful turn as an amateur portraitist of family pets that convinced him to pursue a career as an artist. While a student at the National Academy of Design, the artist often used the animals at the Central Park Zoo as models. Thayer became fascinated with the protective coloration of wildlife. Here, a predator’s facial features emerge from a richly-textured background that nearly dissolves the contours of its voluminous mane. [KEG]
Elenore Plaisted Abbott
1911
