Richard Hooke and his Photo-Painted Portrait of William Gaskell

A talk by Jevon Thistlewood. Richard Hooke’s career as a portrait painter neatly overlaps the rapid rise and development of commercially available black and white photography. The term “Photo-Painting” refers to the technique of overpainting photographs, usually in oil paint, to create portraits. In the absence of colour photography, portraits executed in oil paint over a monochrome photographic image were more extensive in the nineteenth century than is generally acknowledged today. This talk will examine Richard Hooke’s development as a portrait painter and his integral use of photography. His portrait of William Gaskell will be used as a case study to illustrate common tell-tale features found in his work.

Jevon Thistlewood is the Conservator of Paintings at the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology, University of Oxford, and an Accredited Member of the Institute of Conservation (ICON).

Doors open from 12.45 and you are welcome bring a packed lunch before the talk. Tea/coffee and refreshments will be provided after the talk  – which starts at 2.00 – and the event will finish at around 4.00 pm

Entry is £6 (cash only, please). Booking is not necessary, although it would help our planning if you could let us know that you hope to come.  Contact Jenny Keaveney  07791 309784