Bruce Kent (b. 1929) is a former Catholic priest who went on to become a prominent campaigner for nuclear disarmament and other pacifist movements. Ordained into the Roman Catholic Ministry in 1958, he served as Chaplain at London University amongst other roles before his political campaigning took precedence. He eventually resigned his ministry after being ordered by the Church to cease involvement in the 1987 General Election. He marched in the four day Aldermaston March in 1958 which launched the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, and went on to be elected as its General Secretary in 1980 and Chairman in 1987. An outspoken critic of the Trident missile system instigated by Margaret Thatcher, he was also prominent in other aspects of peace campaigning. He was President of the International Peace Bureau (1985-92) and the National Peace Council (1999-2000).
The resulting oil portrait is in the National Portrait Gallery. Schwarz had asked to paint him and did so in three sittings carried out in Kent’s flat.

Inscriptions / Translations:  H Scwarz '93