A portrait of the chef José Andrés (Mieres, Asturias, 53 years old) will be hung in the halls of the National Portrait Museum in Washington next week.
The Spaniard has been chosen as one of the people who represent the
Portrait of a Nation,
the series with which the Smithsonian Institution museum recognizes the most outstanding personalities of the political, cultural, social and sports life of the United States.
Along with José Andrés, among those recognized at a gala to be held on November 12, are the tennis players Serena and Venus Williams and Dr. Anthony Fauci, who led the fight against the covid pandemic in the United States.
The painting that portrays José Andrés is titled
José Andrés and the Olla de Barro that Feeds the World,
like this, with a mixture of English and Spanish.
The clay pot that feeds the world is its organization World Central Kitchen, ready to help feed those who need it in an emergency anywhere in the world, be it in Ukraine due to the war or in Florida due to Hurricane Ian.
A work for which he has already been awarded the Princess of Asturias of Concord 2021.
The portrait of chef José Andrés, made by Kadir Nelson for the Smithsonian Institution's 'Portrait of a Nation' series.
Kadir Nelson / Smithsonian Institution
The portrait, an oil on canvas, has been made by Kadir Nelson, a painter and illustrator well known for his covers of The New Yorker
magazine
and for those of Michael Jackson and rapper Drake albums.
His work is very focused on African-American culture.
Born in Washington in 1974, Nelson took his first steps as a conceptual artist with filmmaker Steven Spielberg for his film
Amistad
, based on the true story of a group of mutinous African slaves on their journey from Sierra Leone to Cuba, aboard the the Spanish ship
La Amistad,
near Puerto Rico in July 1839.
Precisely, The Heartland Foundation, from Spielberg, is among those who have contributed to the acquisition of the portrait by the museum.
José Andrés has chosen to present Laurene Powell Jobs, the billionaire widow of Steve Jobs and president of the Emerson Collective, focused on education, immigration reform, the environment, the media and health, at the next gala.
José Andrés, said Kadir Nelson, “is an inspiration to the world and embodies the spirit of the awards”.
"The
Portrait of a Nation
Award is an expression of gratitude for our country's leaders who have made a difference and continue to champion a better future," said Kim Sajet, director of the National Portrait Gallery, announcing the nominees a few months ago. .
“These honorees are innovators in their respective disciplines and champions of social causes who use their voices to care for and uplift others.
The
Portrait of a Nation
award reminds us that history is alive and that the decisions people make have an impact on the nation's legacy,” she added.
José Andrés is recognized for his humanitarian and educational work, as a culinary innovator and, of course, as a promoter of the World Central Kitchen, which has received numerous distinctions.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by José Andrés (@chefjoseandres)
“I feel very honored that he is going to hang [the portrait] in this prestigious institution that has been a source of inspiration for me in Washington for so many years,” he thanked the chef for the distinction with a message on his Instagram account, which accompanied also to the work he stars in.
“This portrait is not 'I the person', it is 'We the people', the people who feed the world.
From the women and men of @wckitchen, to those who show love by feeding their family, to each of us dedicated to the simple mission of changing the world through the power of food."
Guests will enjoy a cocktail and a private tour of the
Recent Acquisitions exhibition on November 12
of the Portrait Gallery with the portraits of the honorees, followed by a seated dinner, the presentation of the awards and a special performance.
Each of the winners will receive their award from a person of their choice.
Tickets for the gala cost a minimum of $2,500, but tickets at that price are already sold out and only a limited number of the $5,000 and $10,000 tickets are available.
As for the tables, those with 10 guests for $25,000 are also not available.
The $50,000 and $100,000 ones offer a few extra perks, and the ones from the main sponsors (Chevron and General Dynamics) cost $250,000 each.
The event aims to raise three million dollars.
'Venus Williams, Double Portrait', the work by Robert Pruitt that portrays the American tennis player. Robert Pruit / Smithsonian Institution
This year, together with the Spanish chef, they pay tribute to the aforementioned Anthony S. Fauci, who was the president's chief medical adviser and adviser on issues related to AIDS worldwide and led the fight against covid in the United States, and to the sisters Serena and Venus Williams, with 23 and 6 Grand Slam tennis titles, respectively.
And also to three other personalities: Clive Davis, Grammy-winning music industry executive and member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame;
Ava DuVernay, Oscar-nominated, Emmy-, BAFTA-, and Peabody-winning filmmaker and screenwriter, and founder of Array;
and Marian Wright Edelman, children's rights activist and founder and president emeritus of the Children's Defense Fund.
The latter will be presented by Hillary Clinton, former Secretary of State and former presidential candidate.
Past recipients of the Portrait of a Nation Award include Henry
Hank
Aaron, Cpl.
Kyle Carpenter, Aretha Franklin, Carolina Herrera and Maya Lin in 2015;
Madeleine K. Albright, David D. Ho, MD, Bill T. Jones, Spike Lee, and Rita Moreno in 2017;
and Frances Arnold, Jeff Bezos, Earth, Wind & Fire, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Indra Nooyi, and Anna Wintour in 2019. Portraits of all past honorees are included in the museum's collection.
The gala is biennial, but it was not held in 2021 due to the pandemic.
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