12 OF 15 
John Major
12 of 15 portraits of John Major
© Arnhel de Serra
Share this
John Major
by Arnhel de Serra
selenium-toned gelatin silver print, October 1991
9 1/2 in. x 9 1/2 in. (242 mm x 241 mm)
Purchased, 1994
Photographs Collection
NPG x68923
On display in Room 28 on Floor 2 at the National Portrait Gallery
Events of 1991back to top
Current affairs
Publishing tycoon Robert Maxwell dies after falling from his yacht in the Canary Islands. Although the verdict was 'accidental death', suspicions of suicide or murder were raised because of his alleged connections to Mossad, the Israeli intelligence service, and the revelation that he had used hundreds of millions of pounds from his companies' pension funds to finance his corporate debt and lavish lifestyle.Art and science
Freddie Mercury, lead singer of the rock group Queen, dies of Aids.Marc Quinn brings a new meaning to the term 'Self-Portrait' with his work Self, a cast of the artists' head made out of his own blood.
International
Members of the USSR sign the Alma-Ata Protocol, disbanding the Union in favour of a Commonwealth of Independent States, thereby granting independence to the various republics.The Revolutionary United Front begins a civil war against the government of Sierra Leone in West Africa. Tens of thousands die in eleven years of violence.
Civil War breaks out in the former Yugoslavia as Slovenia and Croatia declare their independence.
Comments back to top
We are currently unable to accept new comments, but any past comments are available to read below.
If you need information from us, please use our Archive enquiry service . Please note that we cannot provide valuations. You can buy a print or greeting card of most illustrated portraits. Select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Buy a Print button. Prices start at around £6 for unframed prints, £16 for framed prints. If you wish to license an image, select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Use this image button, or contact our Rights and Images service. We digitise over 8,000 portraits a year and we cannot guarantee being able to digitise images that are not already scheduled.
Steve Devane
10 January 2019, 01:39
Taken in the White Room at 10 Downing Street by Arnhel de Serra. The Art Director, Steve Devane (who commissioned this portrait) was present, and doubled as the photographer's assistant helping to set up the shot, and to re-load the Hasselblad 500, in addition to art directing. The brief was to create a simple, timeless portrait of John Major, against a black background. As no time could be allocated to setting up a backdrop, this was achieved by setting up the camera close to the single over-sized soft box and flash head, and required the Prime Minister to sit a few inches away from the flash. The heat was immense and caused the Prime Minister to recoil every time a shot was taken.