Object Image

Benjamin West (1738-1820), History painter and President of the Royal Academy.

Marble bust, signed and dated 1818, commissioned by Sir Simon Clarke; another version was given by Chantrey to the Royal Academy as his Diploma work.

The loose drapery worn by West in this portrait is reminiscent of ancient Greek and Roman sculpture. Neo-classical sculpture of this kind was very popular in the eighteenth-century, as Greece and Rome were regarded as the cradles of civilisation....

1818
Marble bust
648.0 x 380.0mm
NPG 607
Image and text © National Portrait Gallery, 2022

Where you'll find this

National Portrait Gallery
Permanent collection