The Network: Portrait Conversations

As the nation grapples with some of the greatest developments and challenges to date, The Network presents a dynamic portrait of the people who help shape America's current technology, policy, and education. Drawing inspiration from Richard Avedon's 1976 photographic portfolio, The Family, The Network consists of generative video portraits of 100 entrepreneurs, industrialists, politicians, scientists, scholars, inventors, and other influential figures, some of whom may be household names and others who operate behind the scenes, who play pivotal roles shaping the history and daily workings of America. The project builds on aspects of portraitist Lincoln Schatz's earlier project, Esquire's Portrait of the 21st Century (National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution), taking a closer look at how the touchstones of America are created and preserved.

LINCOLN SCHATZ is a contemporary American artist best known for works that utilize video to collect, store, and display images from specific environments. His CUBE project combined architecture, video, and performance, using a video system to generate painterly, screen-based portraits of subjects. In 2008, the Hearst Corporation commissioned Schatz to create CUBE portraits to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of Esquire magazine. The work profiled the 75 most influential people of the 21st century including George Clooney, LeBron James, Jeff Bezos, and Craig Newmark. The series of portraits was acquired by the National Portrait Gallery in 2010. His work is held in numerous public and private collections.