Thomas Sherlock (d.1761), Bishop of London, Master (1714–1719)

Held at St Catharine's College, Cambridge, this undated portrait of Thomas Sherlock in his capacity as Master of the college (1714–1719) represents a distinct category of institutional portrait — images commissioned not purely for personal commemoration but to assert a college's connection to distinguished individuals. Sherlock's mastershipand subsequent ecclesiastical rise to Bishop of London made him precisely the kind of figure whom Cambridge colleges wished to record. Jean-Baptiste van Loo's participation in such a commission is notable: the college may have acquired or commissioned this portrait during his English years (1737–1742), even if the mastershipdates were historical at that point. Institutional portraits of this kind shaped the visual culture of the ancient universities and served as both historical record and inspiration for current members.

The academic or ecclesiastical setting of a college portrait typically called for a sober, formal approach, and van Loo responds with restraint: the figure is placed against a plain or lightly architectural background, the clerical dress provides compositional structure, and the face carries the composed authority expected of a distinguished churchman and scholar.