Midshipman Augustus Brine

Description

Augustus Brine stands in naval dress on a rocky shore in John Singleton Copley’s portrait of 1782. A blue coat and pale trousers establish his uniformed identity, while the sea behind him supplies the setting for his new occupation. He was thirteen when he entered the Royal Navy as a midshipman. The painting brings a youthful face into a presentation shaped by expectations of responsibility and service.

The sitter’s presentation belongs to formal portraiture, but his age adds a distinctive tension to its sense of responsibility. Clothing, bearing and surrounding elements can convey expectations that extend beyond the immediate moment, while the face keeps the image individual. Copley’s painting does not require the later stages of Brine’s naval life to establish its interest. It holds a young person at the threshold of an adult occupation, with recognition and aspiration occupying the same likeness.

Read our guide to giclée prints or browse the John Singleton Copley collection.