Barkley L. Hendricks, Influential American Portrait Painter, Dies at 72

Barkley L. Hendricks, the American artist, has passed away at the age of 72, as confirmed by Jack Shainman Gallery. Renowned for his life-sized oil portraits of Black Americans from the urban Northeast during the 1960s and 1970s, Hendricks maintained this focus throughout his artistic journey. His depictions of modern figures have inspired artists such as Lynette Yiadom-Boakye and Njideka Akunyili Crosby. He obtained both his BFA and MFA from Yale University and served as a professor at Connecticut College from 1972 to 2010. A significant retrospective, 'Barkley L. Hendricks: Birth of the Cool,' began at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University in 2008 and later toured several prestigious venues. His works are included in major public collections worldwide, including the Whitney Museum and the Brooklyn Museum in New York.