Portrait of Louis Lipps
Object number2017.65.14
Artist
Ron Mahoney
MediumPencil; Paperboard; Paper; Ink; Adhesive
Credit LineGift of Arthur Joseph Rooney, Jr.
DescriptionDrawing in pencil on rectangular white paperboard. Black and white drawing is a montage of images of a man. At top center is a bust portrait of man wearing football jersey, presented straight on, figure is smiling; portrait is framed in black and white border and has player name in black to the left. Bottom half of drawing are two waist-length portraits of Lipps. Bottom left figure is in three-quarter view facing slightly proper right, figure wears black Pittsburgh Steelers football uniform with football in proper left hand. Bottom right figure is in three-quarter view facing slightly proper left, figure wears white Steelers uniform and holds football in both hands. Drawn images are surrounded by white margins. Reverse of paperboard is mustard yellow.DimensionsHeight x Width x Depth: 20.125 × 14.125 × 0.125 in. (51.1 × 35.9 × 0.3 cm)SignedArtist signature in pencil in the bottom right corner margin “Ron Mahoney”.
Inscriptions“LOUIS LIPPS” drawn in black along the top left edge of the drawn area.
Bottom two figures have “83” on their helmets, shoulders, and chests.
MarksReverse of paperboard has black printed text in top right corner “TION BOARD 082112” and along right edge below center “BAINBRIDGE COLD PRESS 80 ILLUSTRATION BOARD 082112”.
Reverse has white sticker at left center with black printed text “40527”.
Historical NotesMore than 30 years ago, Art Rooney, Jr. and his wife Kay visited the Circle Art Gallery in San Diego, California. By the time they left, a new passion had been born. Unable to buy a seascape that had sold while they shopped, Rooney purchased a portrait instead. Painted by Merv Corning, the work featured Cincinnati Bengals’ wide receiver Isaac Curtis, a player Rooney admired. Over the next several years Rooney returned to the gallery while in San Diego on scouting trips or at Steelers’ games and bought more of Corning’s art. Eventually Corning called him, beginning a friendship and artistic partnership that lasted until the artist passed away in 2006. Rooney gradually transitioned from a buyer of art, to commissioning specific pieces. He began to collect what he knew and loved – paintings that depicted members of the great Steelers’ teams of the 1970s. Rooney had scouted many of these players and had come to know and respect them as athletes, but also as men. Over time Art Rooney’s collection has broadened to include pieces by two other artists and to represent his life, his work, and the special relationships he developed through football. A graduate of the Cleveland Institute of Art, Ron Mahoney, who freelanced in Pittsburgh, is now based in Deerfield Beach, Fla. He works in a variety of mediums, including pencil, acrylics, and oil. Mahoney brings a softer, more impressionistic style to his sports art that suggests motion and life, even in a still portrait. In addition to Steelers football, Mahoney created the 2012 poster art for the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix and frequently does commissions for Major League Baseball. He also illustrates children’s booksLabel TextChuck Noll believed Lipps to be a player “who had it all” and Art Rooney concurred. The Steelers drafted him in the first round seeing a player with great athletic ability, hands, field vision, and speed. With Stallworth’s mentoring, the Steelers once again had two wide receivers with the ability to make the big play. An NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, Lipps also became a threat on special teams, recording 656 yards in punt returns. After eight seasons with the Steelers and one with the Saints, Lipps retired with 359 passes for 6,031 yards and 39 touchdowns.
Related person
Louis Adam Lipps
(born 1962)
Collector
Arthur Joseph Rooney Jr.
Related institution
Pittsburgh Steelers
Related institution
Concept Art Gallery
On View
Not on view
Ron Mahoney
Ron Mahoney
