Denis Kearney Being Drawn through the Streets of San Francisco After His Release from the House of Correction
Date1895
Artist
Howard Pyle
(American illustrator, 1853–1911)
Illustration Citation"A History of the Last Quarter-Century in the United States," by E. Benjamin Andrews, in Scribner's Magazine, October 1895
MediumBlack and white oil on paper
Dimensions18 x 11 7/8 in. (45.7 x 30.2 cm)
frame: 22 x 15 7/8 in. (55.9 x 40.3 cm)
frame: 22 x 15 7/8 in. (55.9 x 40.3 cm)
Credit LineMuseum Purchase, 1915
Object number1915-25
On View
Not on viewClassificationsPAINTING
Label TextDenis Kearney was a political activist whose incendiary speeches led to his imprisonment in the 1870s. Instead of highlighting Kearney (seated), Howard Pyle's composition focuses on listeners in the foreground, reacting to a political address and talking among themselves, thereby bringing the viewer into the scene, almost as another observer. Scribner's noted that Pyle's illustration was based on a photograph and Kearney's reminiscences.
