The subject of this painting is Walter Sickert’s own doctor. He is rendered entirely in sepia tones and is dramatically framed by the dark green fabric of the chair, which relieves the monochromy of the scene. Sickert cleverly emphasises the diagonal in this painting, imbuing it with an uneasiness that is heightened by the corpse-like appearance of the sick doctor himself. Sickert first sought a career as an actor, before studying art as an assistant to James Abbott McNeill Whistler. Through his master’s influence and that of Edgar Degas, whom he met in Paris, he developed a highly personal version of Impressionism. He later secured his prominence as a realist painter after producing a series of paintings illustrating the infamous Camden Town Murder of 1907. Sickert continued to paint until his death and his work inspired later generations of British artists, including Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud.