Key words
symbols; the double portrait
Questions to ask
What kind of relationship do you think the artist had with the subjects? Think about the period that this was painted in. Who would you choose to paint a portrait of you, and why?
Do you think that the artist has aimed to give the viewer any insights into the character of the sitters by including particular clues in the painting?
Why do you think that the sitters are not looking at the viewer, nor each other? Is there any way of knowing?
How this might inspire your work
Chose two people and ask them to pose for a double portrait. Ask the people to act out a scenario, and get them to freeze at a particular point in this scenario. Take a photo or make a sketch of the models while they are frozen.
What do you want the portrait to say about their relationship to each other? Think carefully about the poses you ask your models to take, and whether these poses will successfully communicate the relationship between the models to the viewer of the final image.
Mr and Mrs George Dixon in Tullie House 1842 by James R. Ramsay (1786-1854).
This oil painting shows Mr and Mrs George Dixon in their home, now a museum. The couple are pictured in a reception room in Old Tullie House; the Jacobean staircase visible through the open door.
George Dixon was the mayor of Carlisle in 1842-3 and 1848-9. He was the son of Peter Dixon, the textile manufacturer.
James Ramsay was a celebrated English portrait painter who practiced for forty years in London, regularly exhibiting at the Royal Academy before moving to Newcastle-upon-Tyne to end his career.
Private Collection, on loan to Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery
Image © Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery
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