Fig. 1, Lithograph by R. T. Stothard after Sarah Biffin, Welcome Collection.
Sarah Biffin
Self-Portrait, 1842
Watercolour and gouache on paper
13 x 9 7/8 in. (33 x 25 cm)
Signed and dated 'Miss Biffin. Painted by herself without hands. 1842.' lower margin
Philip Mould & Co.
To view all current artworks for sale visit philipmould.com This rare self-portrait by Sarah Biffin was painted in 1842 and has survived in an excellent state of preservation.Biffin was born...
To view all current artworks for sale visit philipmould.com
This rare self-portrait by Sarah Biffin was painted in 1842 and has survived in an excellent state of preservation.Biffin was born with the condition phocomelia, described on her baptism record as ‘born without arms and legs’. With considerable determination and a remarkable natural talent, Biffin taught herself to sew, write, and paint professionally using her mouth and shoulder. As a working-class, disabled woman artist, she might never have expected the level of fame and success she later achieved, and her surviving artwork is a testament to her success against the greatest odds.
By the date this work was painted, Sarah Biffin had become a household name – she had recently been mentioned in two novels by Charles Dickens and has been patronised by the royal family. It was painted shortly after her move to Liverpool and is the first known work signed by Biffin with her maiden name, after exhibiting under her married name ‘Wright’ for seventeen years. Proudly signed ‘Miss Biffin. Painted by herself without hands. 1842’, this reinstatement of her name could be construed as an acknowledgement of her artistic legacy as an autonomous, single woman preparing for a new chapter in her career following her earlier unsuccessful marriage.
Dressed in clothing which places her at the height of fashion of the period, Biffin presents herself as a respectable, professional artist. The neckline of her dress, which is trimmed with intricate lace, slopes elegantly toward her shoulders. Her low pointed waist plumes into a bell-shaped skirt which is somewhat obscured by the paisley shawl draped over her shoulders. Her hair is parted in the centre with ringlets, likely styled with loops, and she wears a stylish bonnet, topped with a large decorative feather. The artist indicates her professional status through the inclusion of her paintbrush, fastened to a loop on her shawl. In reality, this set up would have been highly impractical; the loop would have been more likely fastened to her dress, as illustrated in her other earlier self-portraits, which would have proven more stable whilst painting. In another subtle nod to her artistic success, Biffin wears a Silver Medal on a chain, likely the medal which was awarded to her by the Royal Society of Arts in 1821 for an historical miniature.
This rare self-portrait by Sarah Biffin was painted in 1842 and has survived in an excellent state of preservation.Biffin was born with the condition phocomelia, described on her baptism record as ‘born without arms and legs’. With considerable determination and a remarkable natural talent, Biffin taught herself to sew, write, and paint professionally using her mouth and shoulder. As a working-class, disabled woman artist, she might never have expected the level of fame and success she later achieved, and her surviving artwork is a testament to her success against the greatest odds.
By the date this work was painted, Sarah Biffin had become a household name – she had recently been mentioned in two novels by Charles Dickens and has been patronised by the royal family. It was painted shortly after her move to Liverpool and is the first known work signed by Biffin with her maiden name, after exhibiting under her married name ‘Wright’ for seventeen years. Proudly signed ‘Miss Biffin. Painted by herself without hands. 1842’, this reinstatement of her name could be construed as an acknowledgement of her artistic legacy as an autonomous, single woman preparing for a new chapter in her career following her earlier unsuccessful marriage.
Dressed in clothing which places her at the height of fashion of the period, Biffin presents herself as a respectable, professional artist. The neckline of her dress, which is trimmed with intricate lace, slopes elegantly toward her shoulders. Her low pointed waist plumes into a bell-shaped skirt which is somewhat obscured by the paisley shawl draped over her shoulders. Her hair is parted in the centre with ringlets, likely styled with loops, and she wears a stylish bonnet, topped with a large decorative feather. The artist indicates her professional status through the inclusion of her paintbrush, fastened to a loop on her shawl. In reality, this set up would have been highly impractical; the loop would have been more likely fastened to her dress, as illustrated in her other earlier self-portraits, which would have proven more stable whilst painting. In another subtle nod to her artistic success, Biffin wears a Silver Medal on a chain, likely the medal which was awarded to her by the Royal Society of Arts in 1821 for an historical miniature.
Provenance
Ricky Jay (1946-2018);Sotheby’s, New York, The Ricky Jay Collection, 27 October 2021, lot 64
Exhibitions
‘Without Hands’ The Art of Sarah Biffin atPhilip Mould & Company, London, 1 November – 21 December 2022.
Literature
Possibly Anon. ‘Sarah Biffin: The Armless Artist of Quantoxhead’, The Somerset Year Book, vol. XXIV, 1925, p.67.Smith, E & Rutherford, E. ‘Without Hands’ The Art of Sarah Biffin, Exhibition Catalogue, London: Paul Hoberton Publishing, 2022.