The paper is dedicated to a scantily explored branch of intermedial relations: the interaction of portraiture and biography. Visual images influence the shaping of biographer’s perception of his subject. Portrait is factual material that biographers either knowingly or unconsciously make use of in their work. «Biography can be characterised as an incorporation or adaptation of visual images and aesthetic effects, often with explicit reference to (or dependence upon) painted portraits» [Wendorf]. The objects of study in the present research are four diverse biographies of Georgiana, duchess of Devonshire (1757–1806), an 18th century socialite and an iconic figure of British culture. The author analyses the pictures each of the four biographers chose to mention, include into the illustrated material, use as the cover image, or otherwise «quote» in their work. The use of pictures is found to be dependent upon the genre and the narrative strategy of the biographies as well as the biographers’ intended image of their subject.
Bibliography
Wendorf  R. The Elements of Life: Biography and Portrait-Painting in Stuart and Georgian England. New York: The Clarendon Press, Oxford University Press. 1990. 308 pp.