Dadabhai Naoroji
- Artist: Sydney Prior Hall
- Date: 8 May 2024
- Medium: pencil
- Dimensions: 6 1/4 in. x 3 7/8 in. (159 mm x 99 mm) uneven
- Portrays: Dadabhai Naoroji
- Museum: The National Portrait Gallery
- Collection record: The National Portrait Gallery website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This pencil sketch shows Dadabhai Naoroji, the man who became one of Britain’s first Asian MPs in the early 1890s. Notice how the lines capture his profile and soft shading around the eyes—his glasses sit neatly on the bridge of his nose, giving a calm focus to his gaze. The drawing is small, just over six inches long, so you’re drawn into its intimacy; every stroke feels deliberate.
Sydney Prior Hall, a portrait painter who worked for 153 canvases and illustrations, used pencil to convey texture—fine lines on the beard, subtle shadows in the cheekbones. The sketch’s uneven edges hint at a quick execution, yet his face is rendered with calm confidence.
Naoroji was President of the Indian National Congress and championed ideas that British taxation had drained India. He travelled from Calcutta to London in 1855, later winning election for Finsbury Central as a Liberal MP. The portrait captures both his political stature and his personal expression—ready to speak of empire, reform, and cross‑cultural dialogue.
See it in person
Dadabhai Naoroji is in the collection of The National Portrait Gallery at St Martin's Place, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
