Not quite a savior nor a saint entirely, José Andrés nevertheless occupies the foreground of a heroic portrait, oil on linen, hanging in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C.. Commissioned by the Smithsonian, executed by Kadir Nelson, and unveiled in November 2022, the painting is entitled "José Andrés and the Olla de Barro that Feeds the World." In it Andrés holds a heavy traditional Mexican crock pot, the olla de barro, between his thumbs and index fingers. His sleeves are rolled up. A walkie-talkie hangs off his vest; a backpack from his shoulders. His feet are hidden in flood waters; his head is in the clouds as helicopters and birds swirl. Scores of aid workers, holding boxes of food, stare at the viewer—or perhaps at José—with anticipation. His gaze is direct, stern, proud, accusatory, weary. |
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