Anna Wintour sat for her first formal portrait by Alex Katz. The painting is part of a special exhibition at National Portrait Gallery in London. The portrait, entitled "Anna," was painted in 2009, in oil on linen. Alex, an American painter in his 80s, was inspired to do the portrait after seeing The September Issue.
She sat for Katz, 82, at his New York studio in late 2009, the first time she has consented to have her portrait painted. "I couldn't think of a nicer way to spend the afternoon. We talked for two hours while he worked," recalled Wintour, who was the inspiration for Meryl Streep's terrifying editor in The Devil Wears Prada.
Katz asked Wintour to pose without her sunglasses after watching The September Issue, the recent documentary film which went behind the scenes at Vogue, and noticing that she had "lovely eyes". He said: "Painting Anna was like shooting fish in a barrel. There was no way I could miss it."
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And Wintour's verdict on the portrait? Well, she liked the yellow. "I was pleased to see that he used a lot of colour, which I adore," she said.
The exhibition of Alex Katz Portraits will run from May 15 – September 21, 2010 at the National Portrait Gallery in London. Admission free.
Image: Alex Katz, "Anna," 2009, oil on linen, 60" x 84"
