Elizabeth Heath

Assistant Curator (Research)

Job description

As Assistant Curator (Research) I work on the Later Victorian Portraits Catalogue, and online resource which continues the Gallery’s series of printed period catalogues.  As part of a small team, I conduct in-depth research into portraits in the collection and also compile comprehensive iconographies listing all known likenesses of an individual in public and private collections.  As well as writing catalogue entries for a variety of sitters - including Frederic Leighton and Henry Morton Stanley - I provide administrative support for the project.  This includes frequently liaising with the external Editor and other Gallery departments. My role also provides the opportunity to participate in related academic activities.  Resulting from my research into portraits of Octavia Hill, for example, I recently delivered a paper on the subject at a centenary conference held at Sutton House (Sept. 2012).         

Biography

After graduating from the University of Reading with a BA (Hons) in English and History of Art, I completed an MA in 19th century British Art at The Courtauld Institute of Art. My first museum role was at Leighton House Museum, where I worked as Curatorial Assistant. I joined the National Portrait Gallery as Assistant Curator (Research) in 2008, on a part time basis. Alongside this position I am currently employed as Project Curator in the Prints & Drawings department at the British Museum.  I previously worked as Catalogue Co-ordinator for The Public Catalogue Foundation, during which time I produced the London North and East and National Maritime Museum catalogues.    

Research interests

A focus during my MA year upon Aesthetic Movement art, served to consolidate my interest in changing modes of pictorial representation across the 19th century.  Subsequent positions have allowed me to effectively situate these works within a social and historical framework.  More recently my research interests have expanded to include the work of British artists operating in the early decades of the 1900s, in particular the varied stylistic responses to contemporaneous artistic developments in Europe.