William Hogarth
Jim Mathieson (1931-2003)
2001
Bronze
Chiswick High Road, near Hogarth's country home
This more than life-size statue, inspired” by Hogarth's self-portrait of 1745, "The Painter and his Dog," looks traditional enough, yet everything about it is warm, fresh and unposed. The correspondence between the man and his pug's expressions — both so intently focused — has a touch of humour about it. At the time of the unveiling Mathieson's statue was compared to Alfred Drury's of Joshua Reynolds outside the Royal Academy, but it is much more appealing to modern taste.
Photograph by Jacqueline Banerjee
