Portraits from Plympton with Katherine Gazzard

Dr Katherine Gazzard is coming to Plympton St Maurice Guildhall on Friday 9 October, for an evening that looks at some of Sir Joshua Reynolds' earliest work in his own birthplace. Gazzard is the Curator of Art at Royal Museums Greenwich, and she'll be talking through the naval portraits of George Edgcumbe and Paul Henry Ourry, which the Corporation of Plympton commissioned as three-quarter length studies. They hung in Mayoralty House, and in 1773, when Reynolds was elected Mayor of Plympton, he gifted a self-portrait to be hung between them. The Reform Act of 1832 eventually left the town disenfranchised, and the portraits were later reunited; they're on display at National Trust Saltram House until the end of October 2026.

There's more to the story than just the paintings. The research has brought to light the previously untold account of an enslaved child known as 'Jersey', and Mark Cardale adds the story of Admiral Zachary Mudge, who settled in Plympton in a house that stayed in the Mudge family for more than a century. The whole thing is organised by Reynolds on behalf of PSMCA.

The night is split into two talks. Mark Cardale opens with A portrait of Zachary Mudge from 7:00 to 7:30, followed by Dr Katherine Gazzard on Portraits of Edgcumbe and Ourry from 7:45 to 8:30. There's a drinks reception and discussion after that, so you'll have a chance to stick around and chat. It runs from 7:00 to 9:45 at the Guildhall, 42 Fore Street, Plympton, PL7 1NB, and tickets are £5.