March 3rd, 2015
Since receiving an Understanding British Portraits bursary, I have been undertaking research trips relating to my work on the eighteenth-century wax modeller, Samuel Percy. Born in Ireland in c.1750, Percy received his early artistic training at the Dublin Society school of art. As with many artists seeking a profitable career, he moved to London in […]
February 16th, 2015
It’s time to confess: I know very little about portraits. I don’t have a degree in Art or History. My degree is in English, and my background is conservation, so I will apologise in advance if I appear easily pleased by the things I learnt when I attended my first Understanding British Portraits workshop! My […]
February 9th, 2015
Experiencing an Understanding British Portraits workshop for the first time at the National Portrait Gallery on the 15th January was a very interesting and thought-provoking experience for me, both on a personal and professional front. The half-day Real Tudors: Kings and Queens Rediscovered workshop I attended was concerned with listening to discussion of, as well […]
January 6th, 2015
Since starting my position at The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery, University of Leeds in 2008, we have received many enquiries relating to the University’s collection of portraits. Our enquiries come from researchers, students and the general public but also staff within other departments wanting to know more about the sitters in the portraits, including […]
December 9th, 2014
For three consecutive years I have attended the Annual Seminar to expose myself to research, ideas, movement and collections that I might otherwise not interact with. In a sense the UBP annual gathering reassures me that I am not being naive or narrow minded about what I research or curate. I always walk away with […]
October 8th, 2014
‘How to succeed in Getting Grant Funding: Opportunities for Researchers’, a seminar organised by the V&A and the Understanding British Portraits network, left me feeling inspired, informed and motivated. The seminar kicked off with a series of talks from various funding bodies such as The British Academy, The Association of Art Historians (AAH), The Paul […]
July 30th, 2014
The Understanding British Portraits study day in Bath offered the chance to visit four fascinating collections across the city. With 18th century portraiture being particularly represented in Plymouth’s collections by artists including Sir Joshua Reynolds, James Northcote and John Opie, Bath seemed like it could be the perfect Georgian inspiration to start thinking more deeply […]
July 30th, 2014
The Charles Dickens Museum tells the story of literary giant Charles Dickens and of 48 Doughty Street - the family home of Charles, his wife Catherine and their children in the 1830s. The story of the home and family can sometimes get lost behind the larger than life public figure of Dickens. As curator of […]
July 3rd, 2014
This year we remember the Welsh artist Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782), who brought a good deal of the Italianate light a flavour to British art of a former age. He was not the only Welshman who found the Italian experience of great importance to his thinking and feeling for art. Quite recently we were offered this […]
June 30th, 2014
As a local history museum we were quite excited when the portrait of John Fenton first arrived at our venue in 2012. The owner was exceptionally keen that we should acquire him for our collection and kindly left the portrait in our care for consideration. On first glance it was a pretty average 18th century […]
