Ruth Gooden on Portrait of a Young Musician by Beauford Delaney

Ruth Gooden on Portrait of a Young Musician by Beauford Delaney

  • Listen to the audio

  • <p>Beauford Delaney, Portrait of a Young Musician, 1970, acrylic on canvas. The Studio Museum in Harlem, gift of the Estate of Beauford Delaney, 2004.2.27. © 2018 Estate of Beauford Delaney, by permission of Derek L. Spratley, Esquire, Court Appointed Administrator. Courtesy American Federation of Arts. Photo: Marc Bernier. </p> <p>A portrait of a black man sitting on a folding chair, his hands clasped on his lap, legs crossed, he wears a green suit with a green scarf tucked neatly in place of a tie, the background field of vibrant yellow reflects onto the highlight of his face</p>

Hi, my name is Ruth Gooden and I’m a docent at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts from Park City, Utah.

Hola, mi nombre es Ruth Gooden y soy docente en el Museo de Bellas Artes de Utah de Park City, Utah.

  • <p>A tightly cropped portrait of Ruth Gooden standing againt a white wall, she wears a black suit jacket with a chunky beaded necklace, she has shoulder-length natural gray hair. </p>

Read Transcript

Portrait of a Young Musician is a painting of a male seated cross-legged on a non-descript, frail-looking folding chair. The chair seems almost too weak to support the large muscular person. His facial expression and body language seem self-assured—confident, almost cocky, as the subject wears a snazzy apple-green suit. Delaney painted the hands folded politely on the lap. The clasped hands seem almost as in prayer. The brilliant color of the clothing and background might cause the viewer not to immediately notice the round, wide-staring eyes and a slight grin on the lips.

Interestingly, the artist did not include the feet in this full-body portrait. I think that indicates that Delaney intended for the viewer to be drawn to other parts of this painting. Perhaps the broad shoulders and muscular legs of the strong-looking figure is where Delaney wishes our attention. Actually, the left thigh might not be muscular at all. The suit jacket could be covering a boney upper body. The folded hands seem a bit delicate compared to the rest of body. It seems like there are contrasts here, strength and softness.

The extremely vibrant yellow background brings out the greens in the suit. Does the artist use this color to lead the viewer to believe this portrait is about happiness? From my research and reading about Delaney, I believe this could be a self-portrait. During his career he became known for his bright, rich, and lively colors, which are almost joyous, even though Delaney suffered in his life. The colors in this piece versus the expression on his face don’t seem to match: to me, they tell two different stories. His face isn’t the broad smile you’d have on a sunny day—the color of that vivid yellow. His smile doesn’t have that same brilliance.

What musical instrument does this character play? There is nothing in the painting to tell the viewer. Beauford Delaney was known to play both the guitar and ukulele—and sing madly. Delaney found inspiration for his art in jazz music, especially after moving to Paris. He felt his work was similar to jazz because, like jazz musicians, he improvised. His art developed a non-traditional style.

I love the mystery of this painting. At first glance, it seems to be a light-hearted drawing of a relaxed figure perhaps dressed for a party or simply to make a fashion statement. A deeper look into the painting and I became curious. The facial expression of the portrait does not match the brilliant colors while the figure seems stiff sitting on the edge of the chair. I want to reach out and touch the young man’s shoulder to comfort him.

My UMFA tour groups will find many different stories in this painting.

La transcripción

Portrait of a Young Musician es el retrato de un hombre sentado con las piernas cruzadas en una silla plegable, de aspecto anodino y frágil. La silla parece casi demasiado débil como para sostener a alguien tan grande y musculoso. Su expresión facial y su lenguaje corporal parecen los de una persona segura de sí misma: confiada, casi arrogante, y el modelo luce un elegante traje verde manzana. Delaney lo pintó con las manos cruzadas sobre el regazo, con una actitud cortés. Las manos entrelazadas parecen casi las de alguien que estuviera rezando. Los colores brillantes de la ropa y el fondo pueden hacer que el espectador no note inmediatamente los ojos redondos y abiertos y una ligera sonrisa en los labios.

Curiosamente, el artista no incluyó los pies en este retrato de cuerpo entero. Creo que eso indica que Delaney pretendía que el espectador se sintiera atraído por otras partes de esta pintura. Tal vez los anchos hombros y las musculosas piernas de la vigorosa figura es donde Delaney desea atraer nuestra atención. En realidad, el muslo izquierdo pudiera no ser musculoso en absoluto. La chaqueta del traje podría estar disimulando un torso huesudo. Las manos cruzadas parecen algo delicadas en comparación con el resto del cuerpo. Parece haber contrastes aquí, vigor y suavidad.

El vibrante fondo amarillo resalta los verdes del traje. ¿Utiliza el artista este color para convencer al espectador de que este retrato es sobre la felicidad? A partir de lo que he investigado y leído sobre Delaney, creo que este podría ser un autorretrato. Durante su carrera, se hizo conocer por sus colores brillantes, intensos y vivos, que son casi alegres, a pesar de que el pintor tuvo una vida de mucho sufrimiento. Los colores de esta obra no parecen combinar bien con la expresión de su rostro: para mí, cuentan dos historias diferentes. Su cara no muestra la amplia sonrisa que se relaciona con un día soleado: el color de ese amarillo vívido. Su sonrisa no tiene el mismo brillo.

¿Qué instrumento musical toca este personaje? No hay nada en la obra que sugiera esto a quien la ve. Beauford Delaney era conocido por tocar tanto la guitarra como el ukelele, y por cantar con pasión. Delaney encontró la inspiración para su arte en la música jazz, especialmente después de mudarse a París. Sentía que su trabajo se asemejaba al jazz porque, al igual que los músicos de jazz, improvisaba. Su arte desarrolló un estilo no tradicional.

Me encanta el misterio de esta obra. A primera vista, parece ser un retrato frívolo de una figura tranquila vestida quizás para una fiesta o simplemente para mostrarse a la moda. Una mirada más profunda a la pintura me generó curiosidad. La expresión facial del retrato no coincide con los colores brillantes mientras que la figura parece rígida, sentada en el borde de la silla. Quiero estirar la mano y apoyarla sobre el hombro del joven, para consolarlo.

Los participantes en mis visitas guiadas del UMFA encontrarán muchas historias diferentes en esta obra.

Ruth Gooden, UMFA Docent

Ruth Gooden was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She attended the Philadelphia public school system and received a Bachelors and Master’s degree from Cheyney Teacher’s College, which was a family tradition since the 1930s. Cheyney is a Historically Black College. Ruth enjoyed more than twenty years as a classroom teacher, serving in leadership roles in experimental reading and mathematics programs and later as a high school’s college advisor. Following her husband’s death, while on vacation in the beautiful mountain town of Park City, she decided to stay. Ruth exchanged her indoor teaching skills to become an outdoor ski professional: she taught skiing at Park City Mountain Resorts and Deer Valley for twenty years. Her life adventures include hiking the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine and walking The Road to Santiago in Northern Spain. Now retired, Ruth continues to live in the Park City Area, where she skis socially and volunteers for the Utah Museum of Fine Arts.