David Wilkie Wynfield was the son of an Indian Army officer and a great nephew of Sir David Wilkie RA. After studying at Leigh’s art school in London, he exhibited paintings of historical and literary subjects from 1859. Although he continued to paint throughout his life, Wynfield is now best known for his striking photographic portraits of fellow artists, produced during the 1860s. Wynfield’s sitters were predominantly artists and architects, many were members of the Royal Academy and included some of the most prominent artists of the day such as Edouard Manet, John Everett Millais PRA and Lord Frederic Leighton PRA. Many figures wore fancy dress mimicking the appearance of Old Masters and other historical figures: Millais as Dante, Sir Edward Burne-Jones Bt ARA as Holbein and T.O. Barlow RA as Rembrandt. The portraits draw allusions between Wynfield’s contemporaries and their illustrious predecessors. However, the portraits of Manet and Holman Hunt suggest he later abandoned the use of costume.