Brooding and seductive, John Donne is captured at his melancholy best. Like a 16th-century James Dean, his sensuous stare avoids your gaze as he ponders an unrequited love. Painted in 1595, the Newbattle portrait is arguably the finest of an English poet. And to keep the picture on public display in London, the National Portrait Gallery has launched an appeal for £1.6m. If it succeeds, it will make a fitting gift for the gallery’s 150th anniversary.for more click here
