Francis Place
- Artist: Samuel Drummond
- Date: 1833
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Dimensions: 36 in. x 28 1/8 in. (914 mm x 714 mm)
- Portrays: Francis Place
- Museum: The National Portrait Gallery
- Collection record: The National Portrait Gallery website
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About this artwork
This is an oil portrait by Samuel Drummond, painted in 1833 on canvas. The sitter is Francis Place (1771‑1854), a self‑educated tailor from Charing Cross Road whose shop doubled as a makeshift library and meeting place for London’s reformers. In the picture he looks calm and deliberate, suggesting his long experience with strikes of the 1790s and his lobbying to repeal the trade union laws. Drummond, known for portraiture and history scenes, handled about sixty‑three other works; this one captures Place before his later departure from the Chartist movement when it turned violent. The brushwork is typical of early‑nineteenth‑century oil portraits – clear, smooth layers that give a subtle depth to skin tones and fabrics.
See it in person
Francis Place 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.
