Positioning Alice Neel as a champion of civil rights, this book explores how her paintings convey her humanist politics and capture the humanity, strength, and vulnerability of her subjects

Alice Neel's (1900-1984) uncompromising artistic vision and deep engagement with humanity in both art and politics have earned her legions of admirers. This beautifully designed and illustrated book surveys the artist's nearly 70-year career, focusing on her long residency in New York, a place that provided her with lifelong inspiration. In addition to her compelling portraits of individuals of all ages, both famous and unknown, 'Alice Neel: People Come First' also considers her remarkable nudes, still lifes, cityscapes, and erotic pastels and watercolors--all considered through the lens of radical humanism that informed so much of the artist's work. Leading scholars delve into various aspects of Neel's practice, revealing that humanism was both a political and philosophical ideal for the artist. The authors address Neel's paintings of LGBTQ subjects; her unique aesthetic language, which merged elements of abstraction and figuration; and her commitment to progressive politics, civil rights, feminism, and racial diversity. The book's essays also explore Neel's highly personal preoccupations with death, illness, and motherhood while reasserting her place in the broader cultural history of the 20th century.