This painting is in honor of Walt Whitman’s 200th birthday.

My idea for this painting came from a call for artists by Art in City Hall, an initiative by the Philadelphia’s Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy (OACCE) asking for visual artists to find relevance in Walt Whitman’s 1892 poem, “Song of Myself” and to utilize art to explore and reflect on contemporary social issues.

“Song of Myself,” is one of several poems published in Walt Whitman’s book, Leaves of Grass, 1855-92.

Walt Whitman changed “Song of Myself” a bit over the years. The poem was first published in the 1855 edition of Leaves of Grass. The final poem is 52 Sections and was published in the 1892 edition of Leaves of Grass.

My interpretation of the poem reflects Whitmans’s views on the inequity of life in America during his time. Whitman communicates his torment and thoughts on mankind and the contradictions of democracy in the late 1800s. His words from the 1800s are as relevant then as they are today in the 2000s.

For my painting I used an excerpt from Section 20 of the 1892 version of “Song of Myself.” You can also see here my study in charcoal for the painting.

Noel, the subject of my painting is an artist who posts photos of himself on the sktchy app as inspiration for artists to create work inspired by his self-portrait photos. When I saw his photo of himself - I knew that combined wth an excerpt from “Song of Myself,” it would make a perfect painting for the Art in City Hall exhibition. I will let you know if it gets included in the show!

As always, I had to make it. I had to share it. Please enjoy it as much as I enjoy creating it. Let me know your thoughts!

For inquiries and purchases, contact me at christina@christinatarkoff.com, or simply use the "ADD TO CART" button.

The charcoal study is also available for puchase:

Original Charcoal Sketch

• Charcola Pencil

• White Conte Crayon

• Soft Pastel

• Toned Strathmore Paper

I take every step to ensure this online image is as accurate as possible to the original drawing. However variations in color may occur due to monitor differences.