Portraits of Robert Leighton
How do we know what Robert Leighton looked like?
If you were to go online and search for portraits of Robert Leighton, you would find many different images. There are more than thirty different prints depicting Robert Leighton, drawn by at least thirteen artists of the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Robert Leighton did not like himself being portrayed. No image of him appeared in books until after he had died (he died in 1684). One of the first images of Robert Leighton printed in a book was dated 1701. It’s thought this was made from a drawing from 1654. The University of Edinburgh has a three-quarter-length portrait, painted in oils, of Robert Leighton dated 1662 (Robert Leighton was Principal of University of Edinburgh from 1653 to 1662).
This activity, devised by Leighton Library Volunteer Guide Malcolm Wilson, lets young visitors explore portraits of Robert Leighton and encourages thinking about how portraits come to be created
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this actvity, learners will be able to:
- Analyse the similarites and differences between different portraits of Robert Leighton.
- Evaluate the impact of artist choices on the portrayal of a subject.
- Create their own portrait of Robert Leighton using different artistic techniques.
Curricular Links
This lesson plan is aligned with the following curricular links:
- Expressive Arts: Art and Design
- Creating and Presenting
- Techniques and Processes
- Social Studies: People, Past Events and Societies (PPES)
- Investigating a Scottish historical theme
- Comparing and Contrasting
Experiences and Outcomes
This activity is aligned with the following experiences and outcomes from the Curriculum for Excellence:
- Expressive Arts: Art and Design - EXA 2-02a
- I can create and present work that shows developing skill in using the visual elements and
concepts.
- Expressive Arts: Art and Design - EXA 2-03a
- I can create and present work that explores and uses colour, line, shape, form, pattern and
texture to express ideas and feelings in a variety of media.
- Social Studies: People, Past Events and Societies (PPES) - SOC 2-02a
- I can compare aspects of people’s daily lives in the past with my own by using historical evidence or the experience of recreating an historical setting.
- Social Studies: People, Past Events and Societies (PPES) - SOC 2-03a
- I can compare and contrast a society in the past with my own and contribute to a discussion of the similarities and differences.
- Social Studies: People, Past Events and Societies (PPES) - SOC 2-04a
- I can discuss why people and events from a particular time in the past were important, placing them within a historical sequence.