Skip to main content Skip to main navigation
heart-solid My Visit Donate
Home Smithsonian Institution IK development site for ODI
Press Enter to activate a submenu, down arrow to access the items and Escape to close the submenu.
    • Overview
    • Museums and Zoo
    • Entry and Guidelines
    • Museum Maps
    • Dine and Shop
    • Accessibility
    • Visiting with Kids
    • Group Visits
    • Overview
    • Exhibitions
    • Online Events
    • All Events
    • IMAX & Planetarium
    • Overview
    • Topics
    • Collections
    • Research Resources
    • Stories
    • Podcasts
    • Overview
    • For Caregivers
    • For Educators
    • For Students
    • For Academics
    • For Lifelong Learners
    • Overview
    • Become a Member
    • Renew Membership
    • Make a Gift
    • Volunteer
    • Overview
    • Our Organization
    • Our Leadership
    • Reports and Plans
    • Newsdesk
heart-solid My Visit Donate

Marilynne Robinson

Portrait Gallery

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
View manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Object Details

Artist

Alec Soth, born 1969

Sitter

Marilynne Robinson, born 1943

Exhibition Label

Born Sandpoint, Idaho
Acclaimed author Marilynne Robinson first appeared on the literary scene in 1980 with her novel Housekeeping. The book went on to win the prestigious PEN/Hemingway Award, and Robinson spent the following two decades teaching and writing nonfiction for publications such as Harper’s and the New York Times Book Review. Gilead (2004), which examines the role of faith in rural American life, garnered the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Pulitzer Prize. Robinson is regarded as one of the nation’s most important contemporary writers and distinguishes herself through her nuanced and thoughtful engagement with themes of family and Christianity. She has written about literature as a basis for empathy: “I think fiction may be, whatever else, an exercise in the capacity for imaginative love, or sympathy, or identification.” In 2012, Robinson was awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Barack Obama.
Nacida en Sandpoint, Idaho
La aclamada autora Marilynne Robinson irrumpió en la escena literaria en 1980 con su novela Vida hogareña, que ganó el prestigioso Premio PEN/ Hemingway. Durante las dos décadas siguientes fue profesora y escribió textos de no-ficción para publicaciones como Harper’s y New York Times Book Review. Gilead (2004), donde examina el papel de la fe en la vida rural de Estados Unidos, ganó el Premio del Círculo Nacional de Críticos Literarios y el Premio Pulitzer. Robinson está considerada una de las escritoras contemporáneas más importantes del país, y se ha distinguido por su acercamiento reflexivo y matizado a temas sobre la familia y el cristianismo. Ha escrito lo siguiente sobre la literatura como base para la empatía: “Creo que la ficción puede ser, entre todo lo demás, un ejercicio de amor, simpatía o identificación en el ámbito imaginativo”. En 2012 el presidente Barack Obama le otorgó la Medalla Nacional de las Humanidades.

Credit Line

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution

Date

2014 (printed 2015)

Object number

NPG.2015.88

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Copyright

© Alec Soth

Type

Photograph

Medium

Inkjet print

Dimensions

Image: 40.7 × 50.8 cm (16 × 20")
Sheet: 50.8 × 60.9 cm (20 × 24")
Mat: 66 x 81.3 cm (26 x 32")

See more items in

National Portrait Gallery Collection

Location

Currently not on view

Data Source

National Portrait Gallery

Topic

Costume\Jewelry\Necklace
Exterior\Landscape
Marilynne Robinson: Female
Marilynne Robinson: Arts and Culture\Literature\Writer
Marilynne Robinson: Arts and Culture\Literature\Writer\Essayist
Marilynne Robinson: Awards & Honors
Marilynne Robinson: Literary awards\Pulitzer Prize
Marilynne Robinson: National Humanities Medal
Portrait

Metadata Usage

Usage conditions apply

Link to Original Record

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm40b60f662-9e47-47e5-bd83-e55962366929

Record ID

npg_NPG.2015.88

Discover More

Zora Neale Hurston stamp

American Women Writers—and Readers

Greetings from Idaho 37 cent stamp.

Explore America: Idaho

arrow-up Back to top
Home
  • Facebook facebook
  • Instagram instagram
  • LinkedIn linkedin
  • YouTube youtube

  • Contact Us
  • Get Involved
  • Shop Online
  • Job Opportunities
  • Equal Opportunity
  • Inspector General
  • Records Requests
  • Accessibility
  • Host Your Event
  • Press Room
  • Privacy
  • Terms of Use