Portia
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
49 1/4 x 33 in. (125.1 x 83.8 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Department
European Paintings
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Collection, Wolfe Fund, 1906
Accession Number
06.1328
Tags
About this artwork
This painting depicts model Kate Dolan in the costume worn by famed actress Ellen Terry in her incarnation as Portia from Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice." The figure stands in lawyer's robes, referencing the play's famous courtroom scene where Portia disguises herself as a male attorney to save Antonio from Shylock's bond. X-rays and traces of earlier brushwork reveal that underneath the composition lies a study of the same figure in ancient Greek dress, demonstrating Millais's extensive ...
Art Historical Context
Sir John Everett Millais'sPortia* (1886), an oil on canvas measuring 49¼ × 33 inches, captures the dramatic essence of Shakespeare's *The Merchant Venice*. The painting portrays model Kate Dolan dressed in the lawyer's robes worn by actress Ellen Terry in her famed role as Portia—the clever heroine who disguises herself as a male attorney to outwit Shylock and save Antonio in the play's tense courtroom scene. Long mistaken for Terry herself, this work highlights Millais's fascination withan themes and Victorian theater during the late 19th century. By 1886, forty years into his career, Millai...