Portraits from the Devonshire Collections are on display at Sotheby's in London as part of its 'Portrait Mode' programme; a series of exhibitions, events and auctions that celebrate the genre as a vehicle for artists to tell stories about people, history and culture across the ages.

Portraits from Chatsworth - A Loan Exhibition (until 4 July) features seven celebrated works by Rembrandt, Sir Joshua Reynolds, Antonio Canova, Lucian Freud and Michael Craig-Martin.  The works span four centuries, from 1651 to 2009, and thirteen generations of the Devonshire family.

As part of 'Portrait Mode', Sotheby's hosted an evening with Bella Freud, fashion designer and daughter of artist Lucian Freud, and Dr Nicholas Cullinan, Director of National Portrait Gallery and Trustee of Chatsworth House Trust. They examined the stories behind three portraits of the Devonshire family featured in the exhibition, including the famous 'Woman in a White Shirt' which marked a turning point in the artist's style. 

You can watch the discussion in the film below.

The exhibition is at Sotheby's London, 34-35 New Bond Street until 4 July and is free to attend. Read the history of each portrait on loan here. 

Chatsworth has always been a centre for creativity, with each generation of the Devonshire family contributing to the vast and varied collections now cared for by the charity, the Chatsworth House Trust.

Find out more about the Devonshire Collections, the Chatsworth House Trust and the history of Chatsworth using the links below.

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