Desmond Philip Shawe-Taylor (born 30 September 1955) was

Surveyor of the Queen's Pictures The office of the Surveyor of the King's/Queen's Pictures, in the Royal Collection Department of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom, is responsible for the care and maintenance of the royal collection of pictures owned by ...

from 2005 to 2020. He succeeded

Christopher Lloyd Christopher Allen Lloyd (born October 22, 1938) is an American actor. He has appeared in many theater productions, films, and on television since the 1960s. He is known for portraying Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown in the ''Back to the Future'' tril ...

on Lloyd's retirement."Appointment of new Surveyor of The Queen's Pictures"
The Royal Collection, 17 December 2004, accessed 22 May 2008

Early life

Shawe-Taylor is the son of Brian Newton Shawe-Taylor and Jocelyn Cecilia Shawe-Taylor. He was educated at

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 –18) in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by Royal Charter, it was originally a boarding school for boys; girls have been admitted into the ...

University College, Oxford University College (in full The College of the Great Hall of the University of Oxford, colloquially referred to as "Univ") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It has a claim to being the oldest college of the unive ...

, and the

Courtauld Institute of Art The Courtauld Institute of Art (), commonly referred to as The Courtauld, is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art and conservation. It is among the most prestigious specialist coll ...

in London."Shawe-Taylor, Desmond Philip"
''Who's Who 2010'', A & C Black, 2010; online edition, Oxford University Press, December 2009; online edition, November 2009, accessed 1 June 2010 (requires subscription)

Career

Shawe-Taylor was a lecturer in the History of Art Department of the

University of Nottingham , mottoeng = A city is built on wisdom , established = 1798 – teacher training college1881 – University College Nottingham1948 – university status , type = Public , chancellor ...

from 1979 to 1996, and director of

Dulwich Picture Gallery Dulwich Picture Gallery is an art gallery in Dulwich, South London, which opened to the public in 1817. It was designed by Regency architect Sir John Soane using an innovative and influential method of illumination. Dulwich is the oldest publi ...

from 1996 to 2005, when he was succeeded by

Ian Dejardin Ian A. C. Dejardin (born 26 August 1955) is an art historian who was director of the Dulwich Picture Gallery in Dulwich, England. In August 2016 Dulwich Picture Gallery announced that he would be leaving to become chief executive of the McMichae ...

. He has published several books: ''Genial Company: the theme of genius in eighteenth-century British portraiture'', 1987; ''The Georgians: eighteenth-century portraiture and society'', 1990; ''Dramatic Art: theatrical paintings from the Garrick Club'', 1997; ''Rembrandt to Gainsborough: masterpieces from Dulwich Picture Gallery'', 1999; ''Shakespeare in Art'', 2003; ''Bruegel to Rubens: masters of Flemish painting'', 2007; and ''The Conversation Piece: scenes of fashionable life, 2009''. He was made redundant in December 2020, following the news that the Royal Collections Trust "expects to lose £64m in income this year because Buckingham Palace and other sites have been shut to visitors." Shawe-Taylor was appointed

Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

(LVO) in 2011 and

Commander of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

(CVO) in the

2021 Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours for 2021 are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded ...

Family

In 1987, Shawe-Taylor married Rosemary North. They have three children: Marianne, Edward and William.

References

1955 births Living people People educated at Shrewsbury School Alumni of University College, Oxford Alumni of the Courtauld Institute of Art British curators British art historians Desmond Surveyors of the Queen's Pictures Directors of museums in the United Kingdom Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Academics of the University of Nottingham Dulwich Picture Gallery {{UK-art-historian-stub