'Doublûres of characters; - or - striking resemblances in phisiognomy'

Artistsback to top

• James Gillray (1756-1815), Caricaturist. Artist associated with 881 portraits, Sitter in 7 portraits.
• John Wright (active 1798), Publisher. Artist associated with 9 portraits.

Sittersback to top

• Francis Russell, 5th Duke of Bedford (1765-1802), Politician and agriculturalist. Sitter associated with 44 portraits.
• Sir Francis Burdett, 5th Bt (1770-1844), Parliamentary reformer. Sitter associated with 113 portraits.
• Edward Smith Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby (1752-1834), Sportsman and patron of horse-racing. Sitter associated with 64 portraits.
• Charles James Fox (1749-1806), Whig statesman. Sitter associated with 299 portraits.
• Charles Howard, 11th Duke of Norfolk (1746-1815), Connoisseur and collector. Sitter associated with 55 portraits.
• Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751-1816), Dramatist and parliamentary orator. Sitter associated with 162 portraits.
• George Tierney (1761-1830), Statesman. Sitter associated with 48 portraits.

This portraitback to top

No political figure or public event was safe from the biting wit of James Gillray, the late eighteenth century's leading caricaturist. In 1798, he published Doublûres of Characters; -- or - striking Resemblances in Physiognomy. This explicit print played on the recent success of Lavater's Essay. By manipulating the principle that heart and face were essentially connected, Gillray ironically unveiled the 'true' faces of the opposition party by pairing their public face with its corrupted countertype. So, for example, we see 'The Patron of Liberty' turned into 'The Arch-Fiend' or a 'Character of High Birth' as 'Silenus debauching'.

Portrait setback to top

• James Gillray etchings, 1777-1811 (1798-1800)

Subject/Themeback to top

• Politics