Best Actor Sketches by Nicholas Volpe
Artist Nicholas Volpe (1911-1992) had an ongoing commission with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to create charcoal sketches of each year’s Best Actor and Best Actress winners. In 1962, a portfolio of 69 portraits was published and sold through movie theatres, mail order, and eventually retail stores. These sketches represented the winners through 1961. In 1975, a book was published reprinting the original portraits, as well as 27 additional sketches, representing the winners through 1974. Although Volpe continued to draw the winners (many hanging at the Beverly Hills Brown Derby restaurant), no additional prints were released to the public. Shown here are the Best Actor prints from the 1962 portfolio and the 1975 book.
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