Mug Shots

Episode

Title

First
Broadcast

Repeated

Comments

Know Thy Selfie

20210111

20221107 (R3)

Writer Polly Coles reads Know Thy selfie, the first of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves. She looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention.

Polly suggests self-portraits are acts of radical self-exposure, whilst selfies achieve the opposite, constructing an image.

Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions

Photo by Ella Gradwell

You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here:

Jan van Eyk: bit.ly/Jan-Van-Eyck

Tracey Emin: bit.ly/TraceyEminCBE

Jonathan Richardson: bit.ly/JonathanRichardson

William Utermohlen: bit.ly/WilliamUtermohlen;

Claude Cahun: bit.ly/ClaudeCahunSelfPortraits

Cindy Sherman: bit.ly/CindyShermanNPG

Greta Sharp: bit.ly/GretaSharp

The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed.

Polly Coles reads the first of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.

Portraits Of Love And Hate

20210112

20221108 (R3)

Writer Polly Coles reads the next of her essays about portraiture and our obsession with ourselves: Portraits of Love and Hate. In this series, she looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention.

In this essay, Polly looks at how double portraits have always worked to connect people intimately, whether in love, enmity or indifference.

Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions

Photo by Ella Gradwell

You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here: Jan van Eyk: bit.ly/JanVanEyck-Arnolfini

Thomas Gainsborough: bit.ly/ThomasGainsborough-Andrews

Thomas Gainsborough: bit.ly/ThomasGainsborough-Daughters

Quentin Massys: bit.ly/QuintenMassys

The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed.

Polly Coles reads the next of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.

Fame And Infamy

20210113

20221109 (R3)

Writer Polly Coles reads the third of her essays about portraiture and our obsession with ourselves: Fame and Infamy. In this series, she looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention.

Examining a series of idealised portraits, Polly asks when is a portrait no longer a psychological study of an actual individual but an iconic image of an imagined character?

Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions

Photo by Ella Gradwell

You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here:

Antonio Canova: bit.ly/AntonioCanova-Wellington

Velasquez: bit.ly/Velasquez-Pope

Anita Garibaldi: bit.ly/AnitaGaribaldi-Equestrian

Holbein: bit.ly/Holbein-ChristinaOfDenmark

The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed.

Polly Coles reads the third of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.

Sitting, Our Place In The World

20210114

20221110 (R3)

Writer Polly Coles reads the next of her essays about portraiture and our obsession with ourselves: Sitting - Our Place in the World. In this series, she looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention.

Polly suggests the world around a sitter can be as revealing as the portrait itself. In this sense, portraiture is also about place and objects.

Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions

Photo by Ella Gradwell

You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here:

Lotto: bit.ly/Lotto-FeltHat

Lotto: bit.ly/Lotto-GentlemanGloves

Klimt: bit.ly/Klimt-TheKiss

Eduard Vuillard: bit.ly/ɀdouardVuillard

Pierre Bonnard: bit.ly/PierreBonnard-TheBath

Marie-Guillemine Benoist: bit.ly/Marie-Guillemine

The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed.

Polly Coles reads the next of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.

05 LAST

Heads, Bodies And Legs

20210115

20221111 (R3)

Writer Polly Coles reads the final essay in her series on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves: Heads, bodies and legs. In this series, she looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention.

Polly asks, if portraiture is a process of abbreviation, can the head really tell us everything?

Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions

Photo by Ella Gradwell

You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here:

Hogarth: bit.ly/WilliamHogarth-Characters

Hans Memling: bit.ly/HansMemling

Spencer Murphy: bit.ly/SpencerMurphy

Courbet: bit.ly/GustaveCourbet-Origin

Velasquez: bit.ly/Velasquez-LasMeninas

The Madonna del Parto: bit.ly/MadonnaDelParto

The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed.

Polly Coles reads the last of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.

Episodes

Episode	Title	First Broadcast	Repeated	Comments
01	Know Thy Selfie	20210111	20221107 (R3)	Writer Polly Coles reads Know Thy selfie, the first of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves. She looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention. Polly suggests self-portraits are acts of radical self-exposure, whilst selfies achieve the opposite, constructing an image. Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions Photo by Ella Gradwell You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here: Jan van Eyk: bit.ly/Jan-Van-Eyck Tracey Emin: bit.ly/TraceyEminCBE Jonathan Richardson: bit.ly/JonathanRichardson William Utermohlen: bit.ly/WilliamUtermohlen; Claude Cahun: bit.ly/ClaudeCahunSelfPortraits Cindy Sherman: bit.ly/CindyShermanNPG Greta Sharp: bit.ly/GretaSharp The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed. Polly Coles reads the first of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.
02	Portraits Of Love And Hate	20210112	20221108 (R3)	Writer Polly Coles reads the next of her essays about portraiture and our obsession with ourselves: Portraits of Love and Hate. In this series, she looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention. In this essay, Polly looks at how double portraits have always worked to connect people intimately, whether in love, enmity or indifference. Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions Photo by Ella Gradwell You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here: Jan van Eyk: bit.ly/JanVanEyck-Arnolfini Thomas Gainsborough: bit.ly/ThomasGainsborough-Andrews Thomas Gainsborough: bit.ly/ThomasGainsborough-Daughters Quentin Massys: bit.ly/QuintenMassys The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed. Polly Coles reads the next of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.
03	Fame And Infamy	20210113	20221109 (R3)	Writer Polly Coles reads the third of her essays about portraiture and our obsession with ourselves: Fame and Infamy. In this series, she looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention. Examining a series of idealised portraits, Polly asks when is a portrait no longer a psychological study of an actual individual but an iconic image of an imagined character? Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions Photo by Ella Gradwell You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here: Antonio Canova: bit.ly/AntonioCanova-Wellington Velasquez: bit.ly/Velasquez-Pope Anita Garibaldi: bit.ly/AnitaGaribaldi-Equestrian Holbein: bit.ly/Holbein-ChristinaOfDenmark The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed. Polly Coles reads the third of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.
04	Sitting, Our Place In The World	20210114	20221110 (R3)	Writer Polly Coles reads the next of her essays about portraiture and our obsession with ourselves: Sitting - Our Place in the World. In this series, she looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention. Polly suggests the world around a sitter can be as revealing as the portrait itself. In this sense, portraiture is also about place and objects. Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions Photo by Ella Gradwell You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here: Lotto: bit.ly/Lotto-FeltHat Lotto: bit.ly/Lotto-GentlemanGloves Klimt: bit.ly/Klimt-TheKiss Eduard Vuillard: bit.ly/ɀdouardVuillard Pierre Bonnard: bit.ly/PierreBonnard-TheBath Marie-Guillemine Benoist: bit.ly/Marie-Guillemine The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed. Polly Coles reads the next of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.
05 LAST	Heads, Bodies And Legs	20210115	20221111 (R3)	Writer Polly Coles reads the final essay in her series on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves: Heads, bodies and legs. In this series, she looks at five different aspects of portraiture and makes the case that portraiture is the most intimate artistic conversation of all. Face to face with another human being, no other art form investigates and reveals more richly what it is to be human. Portraits can promote exploitation and self-aggrandisement, but at their best, they are instruments of honesty, love and profound attention. Polly asks, if portraiture is a process of abbreviation, can the head really tell us everything? Produced by Melanie Harris of Sparklab Productions Photo by Ella Gradwell You can find images of some of the paintings by artists referenced here: Hogarth: bit.ly/WilliamHogarth-Characters Hans Memling: bit.ly/HansMemling Spencer Murphy: bit.ly/SpencerMurphy Courbet: bit.ly/GustaveCourbet-Origin Velasquez: bit.ly/Velasquez-LasMeninas The Madonna del Parto: bit.ly/MadonnaDelParto The BBC is not responsible for the contents of the sites listed. Polly Coles reads the last of her essays on portraiture and our obsession with ourselves.