Portrait

Warning!

At least some content in this article is derived from information featured in Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery. Spoilers will be present within the article.

"Hogwarts portraits are able to talk and move around from picture to picture. They behave like their subjects. However, the degree to which they can interact with the people looking at them depends not on the skill of the painter, but on the power of the witch or wizard painted."

—Description of a portrait^[src]

Portraits are paintings made of certain individuals, namely witches and wizards.^[1]

The subject of a magical portrait is sentient due to enchantments placed on the portrait by the painter. The portrait will be able to use some of the subject's favourite phrases and imitate their general demeanour based on how the subject appears to the painter; however, they are limited in what they can say or do.^[2] A portrait can also move from portrait to portrait, or else visit a portrait of them elsewhere in the world.^[3]

Bimp, Oliver Cartwright, John Homme, Luxo Karuzos, Pablo Picasso and Leonardo Da Vinci were all expert painters. Magenta Comstock was an experimental painter whose subjects' eyes followed their viewers home.^[4]

Depiction

A witch or wizard can go to a wizarding painter to have themselves painted. This is usually done so that the portraitist can enchant the portrait to have some characteristics of the subject. The portrait will be able to use some of the subject's favourite phrases and imitate their general demeanour. When a magical portrait is taken, the witch or wizard artist will naturally use enchantments to ensure that the painting will be able to move in the usual way.^[2]

Portrait person

Sir Cadogan's portrait is forever challenging people to a fight, falling off its horse and behaving in a fairly unbalanced way, which is how the subject appeared to the poor wizard who had to paint him, while the portrait of the Fat Lady continues to indulge her love of good food, drink, and tip-top security long after her living model passed away.^[2]

Hogwarts Paintings Fleeing — The individuals depicted in the paintings fleeing in preparation for the Battle of Hogwarts

A portrait knows little if anything of its subject's life, and therefore could not hold a very interesting conversation about its subject, as they are only representations of the living subjects as seen by the artist.^[2] The exception to this is of the portraits of Hogwarts headmasters, which are kept in a cupboard from the time of their painting, which is usually very old,^[1] until the subject dies.^[2] The headmaster can therefore teach their portrait to act and speak like them so that they can teach their successors.^[2] Despite this, the people in the portraits were considered a sort of memoir or support mechanism. Prior to taking up the post of Headmistress of Hogwarts on a permanent basis, Minerva McGonagall was advised to not mistake those in the paintings for actual people.^[5] The depth of knowledge and insight contained in some of the headmasters' and headmistresses' portraits is unknown to any but the incumbents of the office and the few students who have realised, over the centuries, that the portraits' apparent sleepiness when visitors arrive in the office is not necessarily genuine.^[2]

The person depicted in a portrait can therefore live indefinitely,^[6] although a portrait does have reason to fear for their life or well-being.^[7]

Magical photographs

A witch or wizard may also produce a magical photograph, photographs that have been put through a special potion. While some of these may simply be animated images occurring in a continuous loop, some react to their surroundings. Gilderoy Lockhart had "countless framed photographs" of himself in his office. When Harry, Ron, and Hermione were taken to his office to be interviewed by Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Snape in the Chamber of Secrets, pictures of Lockhart (with his hair now in rollers) dodged out of sight. A few moments later, the photographs were nodding in agreement as Lockhart spoke.^[8]

Known portraits

Portrait	Known locations	Notes
Albus Dumbledore	Headmaster's office	During Severus Snape's time as Headmaster the painting hid the Sword of Gryffindor, to keep it safe from Lord Voldemort. He later provided advice to Harry Potter.
Ambrose Swott	Headmaster's office
Anne Boleyn	Grand Staircase near the 2nd floor landing
Ariana Dumbledore	Aberforth's room at the Hog's Head Inn	In 1997–1998 school year, her portrait concealed a secret passage to the Room of Requirement.
Armando Dippet	Headmaster's office
Barnabas the Barmy	7th floor, Hogwarts Castle
Professor Basil Fronsac	Headmaster's office	Secret passages: 1995–1996 school year Grand Staircase to the 2nd floor corridor near the Library 1996–1997 school year Dungeons to the Grand Staircase
	Grand Staircase
	Library
	Dungeons
Bloody Baron	Near the Potions Classroom	Slytherin House Ghost
Brian Gagwilde III	Entrance Hall
Brian Gagwilde III	Grand Staircase
Brutus Scrimgeour	Hogwarts Trophy Room	Concealed a secret passage between the Trophy Room and the 4th floor.
Circe	Grand Staircase	Concealed a secret passage between the Grand Staircase and the Entrance Hall side room.
Circe	Entrance Hall side room
Damara Dodderidge	Grand Staircase	1995 to 1997* Her portrait concealed a secret passage from the Grand Staircase to the Clock Tower.
	Clock Tower
	Gryffindor Tower
Daryle	Unknown
Dexter Fortescue	Headmaster's office
Dilys Derwent	Headmaster's office
Dilys Derwent	St Mungo's main admitting area
Edgar Stroulger	Sixth floor of Hogwarts Castle	Guards a secret passage in 1993
Elfrida Cragg	Headquarters of the British Ministry of Magic
Elizabeth Burke	1991 to 1995Grand Staircase 1995 to 1996Entrance DungeonNear the entrance to the Potions ClassroomThe 7th floor corridor	1995 to 1996 her portrait concealed 2 secret passageways: Entrance Dungeon to the Main Dungeons Near the entrance to the Potions Classroom to the 7th floor corridor 1997 Malfoy Manor
Emeric Switch	Hogwarts Castle
Edessa Sakndenberg	Headmaster's office
	East Wing
	Grand Staircase
	Other Halls
Everard	Headmaster's office
Everard	British Ministry of Magic Headquarters
Fat Friar	One of the Hogwarts Castle's corridors	Hufflepuff House Ghost
Fat Lady	Guards the Gryffindor Tower
George von Rheticus	1995–1996 school year Grand Staircase 7th floor corridor Viaduct Entrance Next to the Second-floor girls' lavatory 1996–1997 school year Entrance Hall	Secret passages: 1995–1996 school year Between the Grand Staircase and the 7th floor corridor Between the Viaduct Entrance and the Grand Staircase 1996–1997 school year Between the Entrance Hall and the Portrait Room
Giffard Abbott	Grand Staircase, below the first landing	1995 to 1997 guarded 2 short-cuts: Grand Staircase to the Transfiguration Courtyard Clock Tower to the corridor outside the library
	Transfiguration Courtyard
	Clock Tower
	Corridor outside the library
Gilderoy Lockhart	DADA office and classroom	Only during the 1992–1993 school year
Glanmore Peakes	6th floor Glanmore Peakes' Corridor	Concealed a secret passage between the Grand Staircase and the Entrance Hall side room.
	6th floor landing of the Grand Staircase
	Entrance Hall side room
Godric Gryffindor	7th floor landing of the Grand Staircase	Guarded a secret passage between the Grand Staircase and the Entrance Hall side room.One of the founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Godric Gryffindor	Entrance Hall side room
Google Stump	Viaduct Entrance	Concealed a secret passage to the 1st floor corridor.
Greta Catchlove	Grand Staircase	Concealed a secret passage between the Grand Staircase and the Entrance Hall side room.
Greta Catchlove	Entrance Hall side room
Günther der Gewalttätige ist der Gewinner	Unknown	Depicts Gunther the Violent
Harry Potter Sketch	Probably now in the rubbish bin	Drawn by Draco Malfoy and given to Harry to unnerve him about the upcoming Quidditch match.
Helena Ravenclaw	Near the Library	Her portrait was non-speaking
Heliotrope Wilkins	Headmaster's office
Heliotrope Wilkins	Grand Staircase
Hengist Rawkes	Near the 1st floor landing of the Grand Staircase
Iris Pivis	Hogwarts Castle
Merlin	Grand Staircase
Merwyn the Malicious	3rd floor landing of the Grand Staircase	Concealed a secret passage between the Grand Staircase and the Entrance Hall side room.
Merwyn the Malicious	Entrance Hall side room
Mirabella Plunkett	1st floor landing of the Grand Staircase	Concealed a secret passage between the Grand Staircase and the Entrance Hall side room.
Mirabella Plunkett	Entrance Hall side room
Newton Scamander	Headmaster's office
Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington	Hogwarts Castle
Norvel Twonk	5th floor landing of the Grand Staircase	Concealed a secret passage between the Grand Staircase and the Entrance Hall side room.
Norvel Twonk	Entrance Hall side room
Oraclitus Spheer	Gryffindor Reading Room
Percival Pratt	Grand Staircase	1995–1996 school year Concealed a passage to the Boathouse
Percival Pratt	Boathouse	1995–1996 school year Concealed a passage to the Boathouse
Phineas Nigellus Black	Headmaster's office
Phineas Nigellus Black	12 Grimmauld Place
People watching Quidditch	Oxford Corridor, Hogwarts Castle
Professor Walter Aragon	Grand Staircase
Professor Walter Aragon	Headmaster's office
Quentin Trimble	Headmaster's office
Salazar Slytherin	Dungeons antechamber	Concealed a secret passage between the Dungeons antechamber and the Entrance Hall side room.^[9]One of the founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Salazar Slytherin	Entrance Hall side room
Sedley Smirkpaltter	Hogwarts Castle
Severus Snape	Headmaster's office
Sir Cadogan	7th floor, Hogwarts Castle	In 1993, he was temporarily the guard to the Gryffindor Tower while the Fat Lady's portrait was being repaired.
Timothy the Timid	1995–1996 school year 5th floor corridor Herbology Corridor Transfiguration Courtyard 5th floor 1996–1997 school year Grand Staircase Quidditch Gate Portrait Room	Secret Passages: 1995–1996 school year Between the 5th floor and the Herbology Corridor Between the Transfiguration Courtyard and the 5th floor 1996–1997 school year Between the Grand Staircase and the Quidditch Gate Between the Quidditch Gate and the Portrait Room
Tobias Manlethorpe	Hogwarts Castle
Temeritus Shanks	1992–1993 school year Grand Staircase below the ground-floor landing 1995–1996 school year Hogwarts Library Grand Staircase Clock Tower Courtyard	Secret passages: 1995–1996 school year Between the Library and the 4th floor corridor Between the Grand Staircase and the Clock Tower Courtyard 1996–1997 school year Library to the Grand Staircase Library to the 2nd floor corridor
Unidentified red-haired witch	Grand Staircase
Valeria Myriadd	1991–1992 school year Main halls of Hogwarts Castle Grand Staircase Gryffindor Tower 1992–1993 school year Main halls of Hogwarts Castle Grand Staircase In the Library	Secret passage between the Gryffindor Tower to a Disused seventh floor bathroom
Vindictus Viridian	Grand Staircase	Concealed the entrance to the Room of Rewards.
Violet	A small chamber off of the Great Hall	Is friends with the Fat Lady.
Vulpus	Headmaster's office
Walburga Black	12 Grimmauld Place	Magically fixed to the wall with a Permanent Sticking Charm.
Woman in the hospital wing	Hospital Wing, Hogwarts Castle

Behind the scenes

In the LEGO Harry Potter games, portraits are shown to be far more interactive than in any other media, with objects able to move from the portrait out to the real world and vice versa. Many puzzles in both games revolve around getting a portrait to give you a necessary object, or bringing a real world object into the portrait to assist its occupants.
J. K. Rowling once claimed in an interview that all of the portraits seen at Hogwarts depict deceased individuals.^[10] This is not strictly true, however; Gilderoy Lockhart owned several portraits of himself which he hung in his classroom and office.
In a scene in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, a portrait features someone that resembles Lord Voldemort. This may be a coincidence, or the director's idea.
- In the same film, Draco Malfoy enchants his sketch of a stupid-looking Harry Potter flying on a broomstick, crashing into things, to make Harry uneasy about the Quidditch Tournament.

Appearances

The Harry Potter Wiki has 346 images related to Portrait.

Notes and references

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 Harry Potter Limited Edition
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 ^2.2 ^2.3 ^2.4 ^2.5 ^2.6 Writing by J.K. Rowling: "Hogwarts Portraits" at Pottermore
↑ Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 37 (The Lost Prophecy)
↑ Wizard of the Month
↑ Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Act Two, Scene Ten
↑ As Phineas Nigellus lived for at least seventy-three years after his portrait was painted, seemingly without ageing or dying.
↑ Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 8 (Flight of the Fat Lady)
↑ Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 7 (Mudbloods And Murmurs)
↑ Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game) - PC version
↑ Edinburgh Book Festival, Sunday 15th August 2004

[HPLE-0] 1.0 ^1.1 Harry Potter Limited Edition

[pottermore-1] 2.0 ^2.1 ^2.2 ^2.3 ^2.4 ^2.5 ^2.6 Writing by J.K. Rowling: "Hogwarts Portraits" at Pottermore

[OOTP37-2] Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 37 (The Lost Prophecy)

[WotM-3] Wizard of the Month

[CC210-4] Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Act Two, Scene Ten

[immortal-5] As Phineas Nigellus lived for at least seventy-three years after his portrait was painted, seemingly without ageing or dying.

[POA8-6] Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 8 (Flight of the Fat Lady)

[CoS7-7] Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 7 (Mudbloods And Murmurs)

[8] Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game) - PC version

[9] Edinburgh Book Festival, Sunday 15th August 2004

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