Thomas Earl of Surrey 1 - 1795

Francesco Bartolozzi made this stipple engraving of Thomas Earl of Surrey, sometime before 1815. It's a portrait of a nobleman, but it’s also an image of power, of a very particular hierarchy, and of the institutions that reinforce such hierarchies. The portrait is based on an earlier drawing from His Majesty's Collection. The reference to the King's Collection indicates the power and prestige associated with possessing and displaying such images. Consider how the institution of the monarchy, with its elaborate court, impacted artistic production and consumption. The clothes, the gaze and the name itself are signifiers of inherited privilege. To understand the print's meaning fully, we need to know more about its context. Was it commissioned? How was it displayed and circulated? Art historical research, including archival documents and provenance research, helps us understand how institutions shape what art gets made and who gets to see it.