Commissioned by the Royal College of Pscyhiatrists 2000

The location for the painting was  17 Belgrave Square SW1

Bob Kendell was a brilliant psychiatrist who made major contributions to the diagnosis of mental illness. His green book on drugs is featured on the mantelpiece.

"Now here was a strange power dynamic - I was the one being analyzed instead of the other way round or this is how I perceived it. Maybe we were analysing each other?  I deliberately took a low view point so the subject is looking down at me. I wanted to paint Roberts eyes as I perceived them at the time... black orbs that looked right into the centre of me. There are deliberately no specular highlights on the eyes. With both our roles in mind, I wanted this portrait to be psychological and about the power of the gaze. "

 One of a series of academic portraits painted for Royal colleges and institutions in London between 1997-2002.

These paintings are viewable online at ArtUk.org

Archive of Christian Furr Portraits