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History
Portraits Inc. was founded
by Lois Shaw, an art and antique dealer and socialite devoted
to charitable work - altogether an amazingly dynamic woman
for her time. Almost single-handedly, she brought portraiture
back into vogue in America.
Serving Clients in the 1930s
In its earliest incarnation, Portraits, Inc. was known as
The Lois Shaw Gallery or the 460 Park Avenue Gallery. In November
of 1940, Mrs. Shaw announced a new service to help clients
find portrait artists; she even dedicated a room of her gallery
to portraits. She called this service the Portrait Painters'
Clearing House.
Incorporated during WWII
During the World War II, Mrs. Shaw was active in supporting
the Traveler's Aid Society and the British War Relief Society.
She did this by sponsoring USO teas and other social events
which often centered on portraiture. In 1942, Portraits, Inc.
was officially founded; and, soon after, Helen Appleton Read
and (then student) Andrea Ericson joined Mrs. Shaw in her
enterprise.
A Jewel of Park Avenue
In the late seventies, Mrs. Shaw's niece and her husband,
Leslie and Rutgers Barclay, inherited Portraits, Inc. They
moved the gallery from the Fuller Building to Park Avenue
at 83rd Street. Originally a neighborhood grocery store, the
gallery became one of the jewels of Park Avenue. Its windows
displayed recent commissions to the delight of passersby.
Carrying on the Tradition
In 1986, Marian MacKinney joined the gallery; she became its
Director in 1988, and its owner in 1990. Like Lois Shaw, she
came from the world of antiques. She soon mounted a program
to 'raise the bar' of portraiture to the realm of Fine Art,
just in time for the new appreciation of portraiture that
is being realized today. Additionally, with the help of her
staff and other professionals, she brought the gallery into
the present by utilizing new electronic tools as well as building
a dynamic gallery site on the web.
A Bold Move
In 2005, Ms. MacKinney made the bold step of moving the gallery
to a boutique office building that once housed the corporate
offices of Banco Popular, just off of Rockefeller Plaza. Within
earshot of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Portraits Inc is now in
the heart of the busiest business, entertainment, shopping
and dining area of the World. We are more accessible
than ever to corporate, institutional and personal clients. |
