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Shanks' painting will be displayed at the Philadelphia Museum of Art thru Feb 2 and then tours nationally. I had trouble relocating the exhibition schedule which ends with the painting going to the Vatican.
The following is the Dec 28 press release. I noted, and was not surprised to learn, that he was not able to have a sitting and had to rely on photos.
Nelson Shanks Paints Portrait of Pope John Paul Based on Public Appearances
ANDALUSIA, Pa. (AP) - When he painted Princess Diana in London in 1994, Nelson Shanks spent more than 40 hours huddled in a private studio with the troubled beauty, as paparazzi buzzed on the street below.
Shanks became a close friend of tenor Luciano Pavarotti, whom he will soon paint for the third time, and has a photo of his young daughter chatting up the imposing Margaret Thatcher during a studio break.
But the Bucks County portrait painter, who lives and works in a formal 19th century estate on the Delaware River, never got to meet his latest subject.
"That wasn't possible," said Shanks, beside his radiant portrait of a vibrant Pope John Paul, which he based on public audiences and photos of the aging pontiff from about a decade ago.
"I got to know him as best I could through every bit of material there was."
After touring the United States with other Vatican treasures, the Pope's official portrait will take its place beside works by Michelangelo and Raphael at the Vatican Museum in September 2004.
"It's a direct competition with some of the greatest artists of the past," said the 65-year-old Shanks. He's not Catholic, but as a passionate collector of 16th to 18th century Italian art, he relishes the chance to take on his idols.
The 54-by-50-inch oil painting goes on public view next month, from Jan. 7-9 at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Philadelphia, then moves to the Philadelphia Museum of Art for about a month.
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