2005 marked the 200th anniversary of Lord Nelson’s death aboard HMS Victory. Creffield was very open in his admiration for Nelson, declaring that “a hero of mine, he really is. I’m a very cowardly person, and he’s one of the bravest men ever.” Creffield fashioned a tricorn hat and took to wearing it in his studio, and he produced numerous depictions of this subject. It is likely that Creffield transposed elements of his own features onto the present depiction of Nelson with Richard Cork noting that “he may well have used Nelson as a vehicle for conveying personal memories of youthful anxiety tempered with determination.”

Text published by Portland Gallery on the occasion of the launch of Dennis Creffield: Art & Life (Lund Humphries), 2022