Past Matters

'Without hands' - the Sarah Biffin exhibition at Philip Mould & Company

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Episode notes

This podcast is about celebrating the underrated, so in this episode, host Ploy Radford talks to art historian and miniatures expert Emma Rutherford about an utterly remarkable artist whose work is being exhibited for the first time in 100 years at the Philip Mould & Company Gallery in London.

The artist in question is Sarah Biffin, who lived from 1784 – 1850, and created beautiful works of art, particularly miniatures, that would be considered wonderful even if you weren’t aware that she painted them without hands. Biffin was born with phocomelia, so without arms and legs, and overcame this enormous challenge to become a celebrated artist who painted for the royal family. In this episode, you will find out more about the extraordinary life she lived, her artwork, and how she was perceived during her life.