Clarence H. Mackay

1874 - 1938

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See all 21 works of art
Tyrolean 15th Century, Portrait of a Man, c. 1490/1500, oil on panel, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1952.5.71

Portrait of a Man

Tyrolean 15th Century · c. 1490/1500 · oil on panel ·  Accession ID  1952.5.71

A man stands on a rocky, tan-colored outcropping and gestures to two men in a rowboat, all against a gold background in this square painting. The men’s pale skin is tinged with gray but they have rosy cheeks, and all three have beards. The outcropping rises steeply up along the left edge of the panel. The man who stands on it has long brown hair, a straight nose, and a small mouth. A halo is incised with geometric designs around his head against the gold background. He wears a crimson-red robe under a sea-blue mantle, both of which are edged with a line of gold. He holds up his blue robe with his left hand, farther from us, and holds out his other hand, palm up, to the other men. Those men stand in a wooden rowboat and hold a net heavy with fish over the side. Both of these men have ash-blond hair. The man to our left in the boat wears a sky-blue tunic and holds up one hand to his chest as he faces our left, his other hand holding a line of the net. The second man, to our right, has a longer beard and wears a brick-red robe. He holds the net with both hands, and looks up and to our left. The boat floats on a copper-green sea with several fish swimming in its undulating current. The fish are painted with dark green outlines. Closer inspection reveals two fish with gaping mouths facing us head on.
Duccio di Buoninsegna, The Calling of the Apostles Peter and Andrew, 1308-1311, tempera on panel, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1939.1.141

The Calling of the Apostles Peter and Andrew

Duccio di Buoninsegna · 1308-1311 · tempera on panel ·  Accession ID  1939.1.141

Shown from the chest up on the far side of a narrow ledge, a woman wearing an elaborate headdress and gown faces our left in profile in this vertical portrait painting. Her pale-peach skin is smooth with little shading around the features. The hazel eye we see is heavy-lidded under a thin, arched brow. The woman has a notably high forehead and a sloped nose. Her lips are closed over a knobby chin and fleshy jawline. Her hair is gathered up in a fine gold net under a twisted, ring-like headdress held in place with long gold pins. The fabric of the headdress alternates between twists of parchment brown or light brown patterned with red or darker brown leaf patterns. A network of muted blue dots encircled with gold does not quite line up with the headdress it overlays. The high collar of the woman’s peacock-blue dress flares up the back of her head over a white collar that curls away along either side of her chin. The garment is covered with flowers and stems outlined in gold. There are thick gold bands at her neck and around her waist. A chain made up of two strands of gold orbs like oversized beads hangs from the shoulder closer to us and then wraps around her body. A gold pendant near her neck may be two chain links or a thin letter B. Light glints off the ledge along the bottom of the painting, and the background is inky black.
Franco-Flemish 15th Century, Profile Portrait of a Lady, c. 1410, oil on panel, Andrew W. Mellon Collection, 1937.1.23

Profile Portrait of a Lady

Franco-Flemish 15th Century · c. 1410 · oil on panel ·  Accession ID  1937.1.23

Mino da Fiesole, The Virgin Annunciate, c. 1455/1460, marble, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1943.4.71

The Virgin Annunciate

Mino da Fiesole · c. 1455/1460 · marble ·  Accession ID  1943.4.71

Venetian 17th Century, Tiziano Aspetti, Andiron with Figure of Venus, c. 1600/1675, bronze, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1961.9.101

Andiron with Figure of Venus

Venetian 17th Century, Tiziano Aspetti · c. 1600/1675 · bronze ·  Accession ID  1961.9.101

Francesco Segala, A Knight of Santiago, c. 1570/1580, painted terracotta, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1943.4.85

A Knight of Santiago

Francesco Segala · c. 1570/1580 · painted terracotta ·  Accession ID  1943.4.85

Seen from the lap up, a woman wearing a marine-blue robe over a crimson-red dress holds a nude baby boy on her lap in this vertical painting. Both people have smooth, pale, peachy skin. The woman sits with her body angled to our left and she looks down at or toward the baby. Her blond hair is pulled back with a blue ribbon or covering at the back of her head. She has delicately arching eyebrows, a long, straight nose, and her small pink lips are closed. The moss-green underside of her blue robe is visible where it turns back over her wrists and around her neck. Her red dress is edged with black along the squared neckline and tied at the waist with a black band. She supports the seated baby with her right hand, on our left, and holds her other hand at the ready near his legs. The baby sits angled to our right, toward the woman, but he turns to look over his shoulder to our left. His blond hair falls to a point over his forehead. He has delicate features with light brown eyes, a small, pointed nose, and a small, pink mouth. He also has pudgy, baby-like cheeks, tummy, arms, and legs. The horizon of the landscape behind the pair comes about three-quarters of the way up the panel, behind the woman’s shoulders. Hazy blue mountains, trees, and the suggestion of a town with buildings and a church spire line the horizon in the deep distance beneath a pale blue sky.
Pietro Perugino, Madonna and Child, c. 1500, oil on poplar panel, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1939.1.215

Madonna and Child

Pietro Perugino · c. 1500 · oil on poplar panel ·  Accession ID  1939.1.215

Anonymous Artist, Bust of a Warrior, 1850/1870, terracotta, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1943.4.74

Bust of a Warrior

Anonymous Artist · 1850/1870 · terracotta ·  Accession ID  1943.4.74

This vertical portrait shows the head, shoulders, and chest of a young man with smooth, pale skin and shoulder-length, dark blond hair positioned behind a narrow gray, stone ledge. Shown against a black background, the man tilts his head to our left and his eyes cut to our right. His left eyebrow, on our right, is slightly arched over brown eyes. He has a long, straight nose, pale pink lips, and his hair falls down the sides of his face from beneath a crimson-red, flat-topped cap. He wears a brown garment with white linen peeking through at the shoulder seams. The neck and seam down the front are lined with white, perhaps fur. He holds his right hand to his chest with his middle finger overlapping his ring finger.
Sandro Botticelli, Portrait of a Youth, c. 1482/1485, tempera on poplar panel, Andrew W. Mellon Collection, 1937.1.19

Portrait of a Youth

Sandro Botticelli · c. 1482/1485 · tempera on poplar panel ·  Accession ID  1937.1.19

Florentine 15th Century, Madonna and Child, c. 1425, painted and gilded terracotta with wood backing, Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1943.4.93

Madonna and Child

Florentine 15th Century · c. 1425 · painted and gilded terracotta with wood backing ·  Accession ID  1943.4.93

Bibliography

1938

  • "Clarence Mackay Dies at Home Here After Long Illness." The New York Times, 13 November 1938: 1, 46.