Illustrates the finalists in the first Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition. Selected from more than 4,000 entries - from every state in the union - by a jury of experts, this work includes fifty-one portraits that provide evidence of the strength of portraiture, and signal the National Portrait Gallery's increased commitment to contemporary art.

Many of today's emerging artists are using portraiture or self-portraiture to explore complex issues of identity. At the same time, these artists are also testing the boundaries of the genre of figurative art. Others are finding success through a renewed attention to classical training in representational art. Artists who regularly create portraits on commission are also experiencing a higher level of interest in their work. The Outwin Boochever Competition 2006 brings together work that exemplifies these trends. Selected from more than 4,000 entries--from every state in the union--by a jury of experts, the fifty-one portraits included provide clear evidence of the strength of portraiture in today's world, and signal the National Portrait Gallery's increased commitment to contemporary art and today's Americans.