Veteran war and landscape photographer Don McCullin CBE paid a special visit to Bath’s Holburne Museum today (Friday, March 13th) to witness the official unveiling of a portrait of himself.
It’s been painted by Charlotte Sorapure who was the 2012 winner of the Holburne Portrait Prize and who chose Don – who is celebrating his 80th Birthday this year – as her subject.
Her compelling portrait of him – and her own prize-winning self-portrait – are displayed in the Wirth Gallery alongside some of McCullin’s own melancholy landscape images and one of his iconic photographs from the Vietnam War.
The portrait of him is also the Holburne’s latest acquisition.
Charlotte – who arrived this morning in the company of her husband, the painter Saied Dai – lives and works near Bath.
She studied at Cheltenham and Gloucester College of Art and Technology, graduating with a BA (Hons) Fine Art, 1991, and the Royal Academy of Arts, for the Post Graduate Diploma in Painting, 1995.
Since graduating, her work has been exhibited widely, including most recently at Messum’s Gallery, London; Mall Galleries, London; Holburne Museum and Victoria Art Gallery, Bath; University of Kentucky, Lexington, USA; and the Royal West of England Academy.
Charlotte has won a number of awards for her work, including the Holburne Portrait Prize; Odin Painting Prize, Royal West of England Academy; Bill Patterson Memorial Award and Cecil Joseph Prize, New English Art Club; and the Elizabeth Greenshield Foundation Grant (twice awarded).
She is an elected member of the New English Art Club.
Please click on the video-link below to listen to her talk about painting the portrait of Don McCullin. Apologies for sound but very busy press reception going on just behind us!
Postcard copies of the McCullin painting are on sale in the Holburne Museum shop.
It also includes a photograph Don McCullin took of Charlotte while she was working on his portrait.
