Disability Histories
James ‘Alfie’ Merryweather
Born 1854 – Died 1935
Alfie – A Ship Painter’s Assistant
Until recently, a full-length portrait painting of “Alfie” Merryweather (c.1930), had been exhibited in our Steel, Steam & Submarines gallery.
Alfie is depicted in the painting as a man of noticeably short stature standing upright and looking sideways on. He is clad in a yellow oilskin waterproof jacket, a pair of heavy-duty trousers and worn work boots, suited to outside working conditions. Alfie has a well-trimmed beard and moustache and is standing on a wooden box whilst holding a paintbrush. Alfie’s short stature is interesting due to his physical role at the Dockyard as a ship painter’s assistant.
A Portrait of a painter’s assistant
Our research into Alfie’s life and upbringing, has led us to believe that Alfie’s short stature in adulthood was most likely attributed to childhood malnutrition. He was born in exceptionally impoverished circumstances.
The portrait of Alfie Merryweather was completed around 1930 by local artist P.V. Jarvis – appointed by the Dockyard as Inspector of Painters. Jarvis was an amateur artist, but a gifted one.
Throughout his painting career (1930 – 1948) Jarvis specialised in painting senior officials linked to the Dockyard’s Ship Painting Department. Alfie was not a senior official and therefore not a typical subject matter for Jarvis to paint.
WHAT’S REALLY INTRIGUING IS the question, WHAT MOTIVATED JARVIS TO PAINT ALFIE MERRYWEATHER?
Through our research and interpretation of the paining, it may be that Jarvis was drawn to Alfie’s skill as a ship’s painter, by not letting his physical stature get in the way of his working life.
RESEARCH PROJECT OF ‘ALFIE’ PAINTING WITH DISABILITY HISTORY FOCUS GROUP
The Historic Dockyard Chatham in partnership with Curating for Change Fellow, Suchitra Chatterjee, has formed a Disability History Focus Group. The group, consisting of volunteer researchers, have spent the past 12 months uncovering and exploring disability histories within our collections.
One of the researchers, Zara Parker, took a personal interest in researching the painting of Alfie due to her own lived experience.
Zara has shared that her own life had been difficult due to her being neurodivergent and having to undergo an operation that hindered development and growth of some of her bones and muscular tissue.
Curate for Change Fellow Suchitra Chatterjee believes that “in looking at Alfie, Zara was able to look into herself.”
Zara said she instantly felt a connection with Alfie after seeing the painting for the first time. Zara’s response to the painting was that Alfie ‘seemed so determined…” unashamedly poised whilst standing on a box to afford him more height.
Update: December 2024
The painting has been conserved with the support of a Pilgrim Trust Preservation & Conservation Grant.
Suchi Chatterjee, Curating for Change Fellow, who led the research into the history of the painting, said “Alfie has a special place in my heart as he was the very first ‘find’ for the Dockyard’s disability trail when I joined as a Curating for Change Fellow. To know that he is finally returning to his place in the ‘Steam, Steel and Submarines’ gallery, restored to his former glory with the story of not only his life as a ship’s painter, but that of the artist who painted him has made me so proud to have been part of what I consider an incredible journey into the heart of disability history and Chatham Dockyard.”
Suchi’s work was key to revealing the intertwining disability history connections between the artist Percy Jarvis and the sitter Alfie Merryweather and confirming the painting’s importance to the history of Dockyard workers with disabilities.
Preserving the Painting
Following a successful application to the Pilgrim Trust, the painting was carefully transported to specialist paintings Conservator Dr Claire Finn. The treatment has gone through several phases of conservation work.
After the removal of the painting of Alfie Merryweather from the frame, the surface was cleaned, and the old varnish was removed. Cleaning tests during the condition assessment revealed that the painting surface had formed a layer of dust and dirt from being on open display and the varnish layer had yellowed. The surface was cleaned, and the varnish was removed using a solvent that did not interfere with the painting layer beneath the varnish layer.
The painting was relined to avoid further structural damage from the canvas movement due to inappropriate framing and stretching in the past. The painting was removed from its backboard, and the freshly lined canvas was re-stretched onto the backboard with new made-to-size stretchers.
After the painting was relined, areas of material and paint loss were filled in with an appropriate filler that had matching properties to the canvas and wooden backboard. A filler layer was added on top of a surface coating to ensure it could be removed in the future if needed. The infilled layer was then retouched using a paint medium that matched the original material.
A new varnish layer was added that has a specific compound to ensure the canvas will not yellow over time. The varnish will ensure the long-term preservation of the painting by functioning as a protective coating.
The painting was reframed upon completion in a 60mm polished oak frame to match the original. The glazed frame includes a reinforced backboard to protect the painting’s longevity.
Collections Manager, Nick Ball said ‘It’s just so amazing to have Alfie back at the Dockyard, the painting has so much importance to disability history in the Dockyard. The conservation work that we were able to commission because of the funding from the Pilgrim Trust has really brought the picture to life.’
The painting will be going on permanent display as part of Disability Trailblazers, in the Steam, Steel and Submarines Gallery when the museum reopens in February 2025.
