A Portrait of Santa?

This blogpost originaaly apeared Dec. 22, 2011

This time of year, visitors to the National Portrait Gallery often ask our docents, “Where is your portrait of Santa?” Although the question might sound like a simple one, the answer is actually complex.

First, Santa is truly a universal individual, and as much as we would like to place his picture among the noble Americans on display at the National Portrait Gallery, we simply cannot. “It would be super to have a picture of Santa in the collection, and we’ve tried for many years to get one, but Santa doesn’t like to confine himself to canvas or print—he also, I really believe, is bigger than any way we could possibly portray him,” notes Linda Thrift, keeper of the Catalog of American Portraits. Santa belongs to the whole world, it would seem, and not just to a single country or on a wall in a museum—even a portrait gallery.

Second, Santa is a very busy individual; he rarely has time to sit for the long hours it would take to accomplish a portrait. When Santa is not supervising his elves, he is preparing for his annual toy-delivery tour de force.

Last, painting portraits is a very difficult task, which requires a steady hand and ideal conditions. Most portrait artists cannot paint in cold weather, and Santa spends every night of the year but one at the North Pole. Deb Sisum, National Portrait Gallery new media expert, observes, “Of the portrait painters represented in our collection, I cannot think of a single one who could work in such a cold environment as the North Pole. Imagine painting at the North Pole! Your fingers would be cold, and you would have snow in your oils, inks, and acrylics; it would be tantamount to madness!”

Although the National Portrait Gallery does not have a portrait of Santa yet, the quest continues to locate a picture of the man who brings so much joy to so many. And who knows? Maybe sometime soon Santa will see the letters written by all our curators and historians and leave a special gift in a frame underneath the NPG tree.

—Warren Perry, Catalog of American Portraits, National Portrait Gallery