Ashurst Turner Gilbert (1786–1870), DD, Principal (1822), Bishop of Chichester (1842)

Phillips's portrait of Ashurst Turner Gilbert from 1835 depicts the Oxford academic who served as Principal of Brasenose College before his elevation to the bishopric of Chichester in 1842. Gilbert's career exemplified the combination of academic and ecclesiastical distinction that characterized the Victorian Church's administrative leadership, and his portrait by Phillips served the institutional documentation function that drove much of the painter's prolific production—recording the leadership of Oxford's colleges and the Church of England's hierarchy for institutional display. Phillips maintained a steady relationship with Oxford's colleges throughout his career, and his portraits of academic and ecclesiastical figures constitute a significant visual record of early Victorian institutional life.

The academic or ecclesiastical portrait follows established conventions, with robes and regalia identifying the sitter's institutional position. Phillips's handling is professional and efficient, rendering the textures of academic dress with practiced skill. The composition places the sitter against a background that suggests scholarly or clerical authority.