Portrait of Michael Atiyah
Date
1995
Sitter
Michael Francis Atiyah (1929 - 2019, British) , Mathematician
Creator
Andrew Festing (1941, British) , Painter
Object type
Archive reference number
Material
Dimensions
height (painting): 1220mm
width (painting): 967mm
width (painting): 967mm
Subject
Content object
Description
Three-quarter length portrait of Sir Michael Atiyah, seated in the Royal Society’s 18th century President’s chair, surmounted by the Society’s coat of arms. Behind, to the viewer’s left, is a sculpture bust of Sir Isaac Newton, by Louis-Francois Roubiliac. The President sits in the Royal Society’s Library at 6-9 Carlton House Terrace and to the right are shelves with bound volumes of the Philosophical Transactions and Proceedings in green and orange buckram bindings. Atiyah engages the viewer with direct eye contact. His left hand rests on the arm of the chair, the right in his lap. He wears spectacles and is dressed in a grey suit with a light blue shirt and darker blue tie with a university or college motif.
Sir Michael Atiyah was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1962, he served as its President from 1990 to 1995.
Sir Michael Atiyah was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1962, he served as its President from 1990 to 1995.
Transcription
SIR MICHAEL ATIYAH O.M. PRESIDENT 1990-1995 BY ANDREW FESTING
Object history
Commissioned by the Royal Society, completed 1995.
This Presidential portrait was commissioned in 1993 but repeated delays to sittings (occasioned by Royal Society business) meant that the artist could not complete the work until 1995. The painting was formally presented to the Fellowship on Anniversary Day, 30 November 1995. [Correspondence with the artist and associated documentation is held within Royal Society provenance file].
This Presidential portrait was commissioned in 1993 but repeated delays to sittings (occasioned by Royal Society business) meant that the artist could not complete the work until 1995. The painting was formally presented to the Fellowship on Anniversary Day, 30 November 1995. [Correspondence with the artist and associated documentation is held within Royal Society provenance file].
Associated place