Introduction

Chapter 1

About the Author: Aerianna Aolen is an active magical portraitist primarily among the wizarding communities in the British Isles. While attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in Scotland, Aolen documented the school’s portraits in The Essential Guide to Hogwarts Portraiture during her seventh year of study. After graduating, she attended Da Vinci’s Academy for the Magically and Artistically Inclined to further her study in art, concentrating specifically in painting and portraiture. Following her graduate study, Aolen painted portraits for upper class wizarding families before deciding to return to her alma mater, Hogwarts, for a professorial position in Magical Art. During her time as a professor at Hogwarts, Aolen developed a passion for other mediums of art rather than teaching and left shortly after to pour her full attention into being primarily a magical artist. About the Editor: Serafina Rosenquist is the current Magical Art and Alchemy professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. During her later years at Durmstrang Institute, her alma mater, Rosenquist developed an interest in magical art while analyzing alchemical symbols in Renaissance paintings. Since then she began to dabble in magical artwork alongside her profession as an alchemist. After deciding to take on the Magical Art course, Rosenquist went on a slightly difficult search through the library to find Aolen’s original index of portraiture. Due to the amount of time since the text was last used, Rosenquist decided to update this guide with more information about the portraits strewn about Hogwarts castle and include photographs in most of the chapters.

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Letter from the Author: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry has a long history as the home of many beautiful pieces of art, and is, in and of itself, a sight to behold. I, Aerianna Aolen, as a seventh year at this fine academy, shall do my utmost to present and display the most prominent and beauteous of these pieces. I do not pretend to be a professional. However, having studied deeply into the history of this academy and the art within, I do believe that I will be able to present the reader with a clear and educational view of the topics discussed here in. I do not, of course, expect this book to have many readers. Nonetheless, there is nothing that would please me more than to create a log of the fine works to be found within and without the walls of the school. I write this, not that it might become a famous piece of literature, but that someone, someday, might find it to be useful to them in their pursuits. As a student of Hogwarts, I have always been fascinated by the art belonging to the school, and have in fact befriended several of the portraits. Though I myself am not a Gryffindor, I delight in the company of the Fat Lady. Similarly, I find a conversation with the portrait of Albus Dumbledore is never anything but interesting. It is my fervent hope that, should anyone happen upon this journal in the years to come, they will find it to be useful. Regards, Aerianna Aolen Hogwarts, Year 7 ~~~~~~~~~~ Addendum: As I was preparing to leave Hogwarts six years ago, I found myself wanting to leave a mark on the school, something that wouldn’t be removed and considered “graffiti,” something that wouldn’t earn me another detention. Having studied the art and portraiture of the school extensively throughout my time there, I decided that I would write down all that I knew for future students to reference. At the time I did not expect to later become a professor, and thus, I did not expect to ever assign a project for which referencing this book would be a good idea. Nonetheless, here I am and here it is. Perhaps the book shall see more use than I had originally expected. I would also like to thank my prefects for helping me with the current version. Regards, Aerianna Aolen Former Professor of Magical Art