A new portrait of Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, was unveiled yesterday at the National Portrait Gallery, London. The portrait is a two-thirds life-size, painted bronze sculpture by the artist Sean Henry. Berners-Lee is shown looking relaxed in an open-necked shirt and carrying the leather rucksack, in which he keeps his laptop, slung over his shoulder.
Amazingly, for someone so illustrious and globally feted, this the first portrait of Sir Tim Berners-Lee apart from photographs. The work was commissioned by the NPG to celebrate Sir Tim’s 60th birthday and made possible by J.P. Morgan. The selection of Sean Henry and the unusual choice of a painted portrait sculpture apparently came out of discussions with Sir Tim and his wife, combined with the desire to move away from the standard photographic depiction of Berners-Lee seated in front of a computer. This has resulted in the National Portrait Gallery’s first commissioned portrait sculpture for seven years.
Sir Tim Berners-Lee by Sean Henry is on display in Room 40 at the National Portrait Gallery from Friday 29th May.
Admission: FREE
Opening hours:
Daily 10am – 6pm
Thursdays & Fridays until 9pm
National Portrait Gallery
St Martin’s Place
London WC2
The London Art File 