Late last year, the National Portrait Gallery unveiled Portrait of a Nation: 2025 Honorees an ongoing exhibition that continues to offer a worthwhile experience and opportunity to peer into the lives of the subjects and marvel at the mastery of the artists.
The Portrait of a Nation award was established in 2015 to honor extraordinary individuals across all fields and disciplines who have made transformative contributions to the United States and its people. The 2025 honorees featured in the exhibition are Jamie Dimon, Temple Grandin, Joy Harjo and Steven Spielberg.
David Lenz, Brocken Spectre and Glory: Portrait of Temple Grandin, 2022, oil on canvas. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; acquired through the Marc Pachter Commissioning Fund and an anonymous donor.The exhibition features two commissioned portraits, one of Grandin and the other of Spielberg, and two acquired portraits of Dimon and Harjo.
“These portraits offer a glimpse into the dynamic relationship between sitters and artists that has defined the genre of portraiture over time. When viewing these artworks, audiences will discover new sides of four luminaries—each of whom has greatly impacted American life—thanks to the artists’ distinct and inspired interpretations,” says Rhea L. Combs, director of curatorial affairs.
Kate Capshaw, The Picture Maker, 2025, oil on linen and single-channel video projection. Commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; on loan courtesy of the artist. © Kate Capshaw
Brocken Spectre and Glory: Portrait of Temple Grandin by David Lenz is a 2022 commissioned painting that depicts Grandin, an inventor and researcher of animal science, standing with cows at Waseda Farms. The farm pictured is the first Grandin-designed facility in Wisconsin, built for humane cattle-handling practices. Lenz paints a ring of light and colors, an atmospheric phenomenon known as a “brocken spectre and glory,” that shines in the background while the viewer’s projected shadow is in the center to symbolize Grandin’s belief that every person is important and can contribute to society.
Evan Mulling, Steven Spielberg, photograph.
Spielberg’s portrait, titled The Picture Maker, is a newly commissioned portrait of the Academy Award-winning director by contemporary artist Kate Capshaw. The work combines film projection and oil painting on canvas. Capshaw intentionally chose dimensions to reflect the 1:33 aspect ratio to mirror the proportions of Spielberg’s first medium, 8 mm film.
The commissioned works are featured alongside the acquired works, including a drawing of Harjo by Joel Daniel Phillips that has previously never been shown publicly. Harjo and Phillips met during an artist residency in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where the inspiration behind her portrait was born. The drawing is made with charcoal, graphite and ink, and depicts Harjo, a three-time poet laureate for the U.S., wearing a traditional native skirt and holding a saxophone as a tribute to her Mvskoke heritage and her creative spirit as an internationally renowned poet, performer and writer.
Joel Daniel Phillips, Joy Harjo, 2022, charcoal, graphite and ink on paper, National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. © Joel Daniel Phillips
The fourth portrait in the exhibition is of Dimon, an accomplished business leader, who had just completed an interview with Bloomberg Television when Jason Alden recorded his portrait on the sidelines of the JPMorgan Tech Stars Leadership Forum.
“This year’s Portrait of a Nation Award honorees represent a few of the many disciplines of innovation that have shaped the nation’s trajectory and are reflected in the museum’s collection of more than 26,000 works,” says Rhea L. Combs, director of curatorial affairs.
The Portrait of a Nation: 2025 Honorees exhibition is on display at the National Portrait Gallery until October 7, 2027. —
Portrait of a Nation: 2025 Honorees
Through October 7, 2027
National Portrait Gallery
8th & G Strees NW Washington, DC 20001
(202) 633-8300, npg.si.edu
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