Reportrait, Nottingham Castle Museum and Art Gallery, UK
 

Catalogue text by exhibition curator, Tristram Aver, Nottingham Castle

The portrait has continued to be one of the most recognised, revisited, and arguably the most celebrated art forms throughout history. Exclusive to Nottingham Castle, this exhibition demonstrates how classical and traditional figurative portraiture continues to inspire artists today, and remains relevant within contemporary artistic discourse.

Reportrait presents thirteen British (or British-based) artists who have reimagined historical portraiture, altered or disrupted typical notions of how the portrait is defined, or used an image or reproduction as a starting point to create something new. Consisting of new commissions made in direct response to Nottingham City Museums & Galleries collections, along with loans and works straight from the artist's studios, the exhibition showcases contemporary reinterpretations of portraiture through painting, photography, installation, digital art, sculpture, video and drawing.

Each artwork within this exhibition is rooted in history, whether directly or inferred. When an artist reinterprets an existing portrait from the past into something new, we are left with complex questions about authenticity, authorship, replication and re-contextualisation. At first glance we may recognise the source - especially where a historic painting, image or sculptural form is familiar to us - but each artist has made an unsettling step forward where original contexts have been exaggerated, altered, removed or even subverted into something fresh, challenging and ultimately, exciting.