Movie director and self-described “storysmith” Ron Howard knows how strong pictures complement a good narrative. So he’s the perfect person to celebrate the installation of Chef Jose Andres‘ portrait at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC.
Loved joining in this celebration. Congrats to my friend @chefjoseandres @WCKitchen & the other remarkable and deserving inductees & the artists who created the stunning portraits. An inspiring evening. @NationalGallery https://t.co/yrfE0MXckl
— Ron Howard (@RealRonHoward) November 13, 2022
Andres, one of only three recipients of Jeff Bezos’s $100 million Courage and Civility Award gift, has been in the news recently with Dolly Parton being named by Bezos as the third winner of that rich philanthropic award this week. (Van Jones is the other.)
And, of course, Andres’ remarkable work in putting his Bezos gift to work to help feed distraught and war-ravaged Ukrainians is also underscored every time the news reveals new developments in the unprovoked Russian aggression against Ukraine.
Howard, who was in attendance to celebrate Andres portrait wrote: “Congrats to my friend @chefjoseandres @WCKitchen & the other remarkable and deserving inductees & the artists who created the stunning portraits. An inspiring evening.”
The Andres portrait was painted by Los Angeles-based artist Kadir Nelson. Nelson’s work appears in dozens of museums, but he is also a Hollywood success.
Coming out of art school at Pratt in New York, Nelson started his career telling exactly the kinds of stories Howard and Andres appreciate. One of his first jobs was for DreamWorks Pictures, where he created conceptual artwork for Steven Spielberg’s Amistad.
Andres himself calls Nelson’s work “incredible” and thanks him, above, for “sharing your process and art with the world my friend.”
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