Portrait of General Pershing
Accession number:
1940.01
Maker:
Buell Mullen
(1901-1986)
Historical period:
ca. 1940
Miltary branch:
Army
Wars and Conflicts:
World War I
Type:
Oil on metal, Painting
Dimensions:
H x W: 24 in. / 24 in.
Acquisition date:
N/A
Credit line:
The Army and Navy Club Library Trust Fund
Location:
First Floor, Pershing Room
Provenance:
N/A
Label:
This is a rare portrait by the painter and muralist Buell Mullen. According to her September 10, 1986 obituary in The New York Times:
“Mrs. Mullen developed a process for painting on metal, including stainless steel, aluminum, chromium, copper and gold… The metal method was evolved through eight years of rigorous experimentation. Using a surface prepared by etching and acid, she learned to accomplish a sound union between the metals and oil paints.
“In 1940, Mrs. Mullen moved to New York, where she continued her work, completing a number of murals for various organizations including the United States Naval Academy; the ITT Tower; the Great Lakes Naval Training Station; the Chase Manhattan Bank, and the Republic Steel Corporation.”
It is in New York that Mullen likely painted this portrait of General Pershing. As a portrait painter, her subjects also include President Eisenhower, Jacqueline Cochran, General George C. Marshall, Eugene Ormandy, Nelson Eddy, and Mme. Chiang Kai-Shek. Mullen was a United States representative to UNESCO from 1970 to 1974. She served as president of the Mural Painters Society and was a Fellow of London's Royal Society of Arts.