Serres Portraits

[anteros_lmc]

Since I'm going to be spamming you with fic about JT Serres for the rest of the week I thought you might like to see a picture of him. Strangely, for a man who came from a distinguished family of artists and had a long career as an artist himself, there are no surviving portraits of Serres. The only known image of John Thomas Serres is this small self portrait of the artist at work which appears in the corner of an aquatint of Liverpool harbour from 1797.

Liverpool From the Fort

John Thomas Serres

The image bears a certain family resemblance to John's father Dominic Serres, Marine Painter to George III, of whom several portraits survive. The National Portrait Gallery also holds the only known portrait of Olive Wilmot Serres, John's delusional wife the self styled Princess Olive of Cumberland.

Dominic Serres

Olive Wilmot Serres

Comments

[eglantine-br.livejournal.com]

I tried to comment last night, lost for some reason.

I am struck by how he presents himself as a funny little person, crouched in the shadows, working. He depicts himself as unaware of being painted.

Most other self portraits i can think of, are looking out at the viewer. I wonder what this says about Serres, and how he saw himself.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

It's a very odd little portrait isn't it? but there's something very appealing about it. There's no proof it is actually JT Serres but it seems highly likely, especially given the name plaque beside him and the resemblance to his father.

I wonder what this says about Serres, and how he saw himself.
That's a very good question. Serres probably painted hundreds of scenes similar to this so it's odd that he chose to add his own image to this one. This is very much how I imagine Serres drawing abroad the Indy, tucked away in a corner among barrels and crates.

[vespican.livejournal.com]

I think many artists have included themselves in their work, although not necessarily as an artist painting the same basic scene. One of our 2011 calendars features reproductions of works by the famous American painter Norman Rockwell. One, entitled the Jury Room has an individual amongst the jurors that I take to be Rockwell.
Dave

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

Indeed. And of course Caravaggio appears in many of his own works, perhaps most notably as the head of Goliath!

[eglantine-br.livejournal.com]

And Rembrandt, and Goya...

[lady-branwyn.livejournal.com]

I trawled the Internet for information about Princess Olive. There wasn't much, but she sounds like a conniver. Interesting that she was also a painter.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

Olive Serres is a fascinating and really quite disturbing character. I'm surprised there have been no books about her life to date. It's the kind of life story you really couldn't make up.

You've porbably already come across this, the most comprehensive account I've found of Olive's life is the National Archive's Princess Olive and the Letters of Junius.