Helen Gillespie ('Head of Helen Gillespie')
- Artist: Frank Auerbach
- Date: 1962-1964
- Medium: oil on board
- Dimensions: 11 1/2 in. x 11 1/2 in. (292 mm x 292 mm) overall
- Portrays: Helen Gillespie
- Museum: The National Portrait Gallery
- Collection record: The National Portrait Gallery website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This is “Head of Helen Gillespie” by Frank Auerbach, painted between 1962 and 1964 in oil on board. The work measures about eleven‑and‑a‑half inches square, so you can see every detail up close. Auerbach worked slowly, scraping layers away and rebuilding them—a process he calls “hundreds of transmutations.” In this portrait the paint has been applied in thick layers that give Helen’s face a sculptural feel. The artist painted several studies of her over five years in his Camden studio. Helen Gillespie was his friend and model, appearing here as a quiet, focused subject.
See it in person
Helen Gillespie ('Head of Helen Gillespie') is in the collection of The National Portrait Gallery at St Martin's Place, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
