How Do Headmaster’s Portraits Work? Are They ALIVE? - Harry Potter Explained

Welcome to Harry Potter Theory. Today we’re looking at how headmasters portraits at Hogwarts work. Specifically, we’ll be taking a look at how exactly these paintings are able to give advice since the people portrayed in them are dead, and whether or not a subject’s abilities while alive impacts how intelligent their portrait is in death.
First off, it’s important to note before we get going on the actual portraits, that these paintings are entirely different from the magical photographs that appear throughout the Harry Potter series. As you’ve likely noticed in the novels and films, unlike the Hogwarts portraits, photographs in the wizarding world can be of witches and wizards who are either dead or alive - it does not matter. They are also unable to speak to the living. They simply move in a sort of loop, waving or smiling at the person who took the picture, as we see Harry’s parents do in the few pictures of them that he finds. So, while, yes, Wizarding World photographs are technically enchanted, they’re not nearly as interactive as the painted portraits you’ll find at Hogwarts and other important establishments. Here’s why…
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[@PoolKid75]

I always thought the portraits were created by the headmaster's office itself and just appeared automatically after the headmaster or headmistress died. We know from Order of the Phoenix that the headmaster's office will refuse to allow someone it doesn't acknowledge as headmaster or headmistress to enter, which is why Dolores Umbridge was never able to enter. Therefore, the office itself seems to have a will of its own. Therefore, I always thought that it gets to know the headmaster or headmistress that lives in it for the duration of their tenure, and is therefore able to generate a life-like portrait upon their death.

[@jessestreet2549]

logical enough but the frames the image/imprints traveled between are another matter. ghosts are thought by some to be vibrations imprinted in reality by persons of unusual strength of will or perhaps because of the circumstances of their death. as for entrance to the office, yeah. the former headmasters wouldn't recognize umbridge as a peer but as an unwelcome intruder.

[@laurent1144]

That's what I thought as well

[@gamingbeastlol]

I suspect they didnt allow umbridge because ministry rules did not apply to hogwarts except certain practices like dark rituals, murder etc. So Dumbledore didnt die or perhaps ask the room itself to change loyalty to umbridge, so that ministry accord was just a paper in which stuff was written. I also think that it doesnt allow someone to enter with the intentions of being the headmaster as long as there already is a current one

[@dylanelizabeth7712]

That can’t be bc what about the other portraits… Like Aberfourth/Albus sister Ariana was able to go to the castle from her portrait and there was also a portrait in Sirius‘s house that was able to go somewhere else because his portrait was also in the castle I believe and the others went to the Ministry to help Arthur Weasley after the snake attacked him

[@rivertownproductions]

If that’s the case, then why did it allow Harry and anyone else into the office?

[@mikebrown1881]

There is something strange, if a portrait cannot learn and grow, how can they memorise people they didn't know during their life? For exemple Fineas Nigellus says that Sirius always had a strange taste concerning his guests. How can he know that since he was dead and only a portrait long before Sirius was born?

[@Shenron557]

This is my guess: A portrait can indeed learn and grow. For example, Dumbledore taught his own portrait about himself after the picture was painted. So portraits can continue learning even after the subject of the portrait is dead.

[@maksimilian528]

Phineas had a portrait in Grimmauld place as well. He could have met Sirius countless times there when Sirius lived there a kid and later in OotP

[@DrDumplingMD]

if they cant learn then password lady will never know the changed password

[@madskjosavikskeie6273]

Ram, a name must be replaced. and their story and words memories must be complex and resonate with the photo in reference.

[@zeejoo]

I think it's more that they cannot learn more about themselves (or rather the subject of the painting) but they can learn about their surroundings within the limitations of what they have learned about the subject.

[@danielkeegan5484]

Subjects of the portraits can enter other portraits of themselves in other places it happens at least one time that I’m aware of within the books. When Arthur Weasley was bitten by Nagini, Dumbledore sent a portrait to call for help and to make sure he was found by the right ppl

[@jeskerjames3260]

I always figured it was like a snapshot in time of the headmaster. It’s like a magical animated photocopy of the headmasters looks, personality, and memories. Not alive exactly but like a hologram of some kind.

[@guilhermepuppim8471]

I always had this impression as well!!

[@meganesenpai]

I just wonder if Voldy had this portrait painted, and use it to make a horcrux, how powerful/sentient it would be? We all saw what he could do with just a diary.

[@ubergeek1968]

That was my thought immediately after viewing this video

[@FatRonaldo1]

This thought was why I searched for this video!

[@HHLucifer666]

The fat lady: 🎶😱🎶

[@joshrodriguez2711]

Can u imagine walking past and the picture fires a curse at you

[@Shtave3]

That would be a cool sequel tbh. Get rid of Cursed child and re write it with that plot.

[@anthonyklanke1397]

Respectfully I disagree on several statements in this video: First, the photos taken by wizards only appear to loop in the movies. In the books they can and do interact with people outside their pictures on several occasions (example: Percy's girlfriend's picture hides her face from view when her nose gets blurred by a tea stain, and Percy himself walks out of a family picture after his real world self disowns his family). Second: The enchanted photos can and do offer advice and assistance even if it does not pertain to their paintings. (Example: The paintings of hogwarts played an important role in the final battle by relaying real time information on different areas of the battle to the defenders and crying out encouragements). Finally, the portraits of the headmasters are more than enchanted memoirs because they are able to learn about new people and developing situations. (Example: Proffesor black talks in detail about serious black, even though black was born years after his own death). I love Rowlings writting, but there will always be mysteries that don't get answered in my opinion. Still enjoyed the video though 👍

[@dinosaurus4189]

Didn't Arianna Dumbledore's portrait have the ability to visit Aberforth's bar in hogsmeade?

[@johnchristopher5201]

Some really well laid out points. I'd also like to (respectfully) disagree with the video's statement that ghosts could continue to grow and learn from future experiences. I'm fairly certain that one of the defining characteristics of ghosts in Rowling's universe is that they are an imprint of a person as they were when they died, and will remain the emotional and intellectual reflection of that person, in that moment, for eternity. Good examples include the Grey Lady, who can never get over her death at the hands of the Bloody Baron, or Moaning Myrtle, who never progresses beyond a bullied teenager.

[@octapusxft]

@@johnchristopher5201 However the Bloody Baron and Sir Nicolas have learned to cooexist instead of being in a constant warfare. The ghosts are rather inconsistent

[@Annihilord]

Good points, also I believe in some cases paintings could leave Hogwarts if they had a painting of them elsewhere, and then only appearing in one frame at a time. Although it does sound like that link has to be intentionally created. Edit:ah yes the video adresses this.

[@brianbrian8342]

There was a portrait of Phineas at the house of Black he can move between portraits of himself

[@auror9792]

I always figured it was like the magical equivalent of an A.I. created by the person themselves. And so they have the persons memory and personality and are activated the second the person dies and can also learn ,evolve and acquire more information . Sort of like what zola did in the winter soldier .

[@berryb745]

That’s what I always thought of them an AI confined to the parameters of its environment, much like a hologram in Star Trek just in painting form.

[@hunterkiller6800]

I think you're forgetting about Dumbledore's sister's portrait was able to go to Hogwarts and back all the way from hogsmeade

[@SocialLocust]

There was a tunnel behind that portrait though.

[@kcsollers8552]

He stated they are able to gain access to hidden passages.

[@matthewsilva8617]

Also Phineas Nigellus Black’s portrait went between Dumbledores office and Grimmauld Place

[@carlfairbank]

What about the trip to look for Arthur Weasley?

[@shotty2164]

portraits can travel between their other portraits no matter where they are. According to the books

[@shawncusack2066]

I just enjoy the thought of the Dumbledore and Snape hanging next to each other on a wall, perhaps bickering with each other as they try to help the current head master.

[@barbarazirger7732]

Severus Snape's portrait would be very intelligent also because he's a very powerful wizard too

[@isaackim7675]

Snape, “Obviously.”

[@JustUsInBaja]

A portrait must not have been painted of Snape while he was Headmaster. I do not recall seeing a painting of Severus Snape in the Headmaster's office after his death when Harry went there. I do remember that Dumbledore's painting was sleeping and didn't interact right after his death, nor did it interact with Harry when he went in to use the pensieve.

[@barbarazirger7732]

@@JustUsInBaja It would have been in all probablity. Dumbledore would want that I think. McGonagall took his portrait down when he fled the castle, thinking he deserted his post. Harry demanded they put his portrait back up in the headmaster's office, once he saw his memories. Harry is supposed to have visited him too. BTW the portrait goes up in the office after they die.

[@vormoszx]

Professor Snape

[@marcelsgroot]

But how much time most Snape had with hes portrait. Maybe not enough for it to give it any kind of intelligence at all.

[@Caranilion]

I thought it would add a dark twist on the school if the portraits are a horcrux of the person portrayed (at least the more sentient portraits). Rita Skeeter is already writing a book...

[@tomdevoil_uk9784]

This was really in depth! Great video

[@barbiquearea]

It's likely a painter will get to know their subject, like live with them, observe them and generally spend time with them before committing to paint them. This is not unheard of in the real world as very often when a writer or an artist is commissioned to write someone's autobiography, or paint their portrait, they would spend some time to get to know that person personally before they begin their work. I imagine a wizarding artist would also study and psychoanalyze their subject very closely before painting that person and enchanting their portrait to behave in accordance to their impression of them. As for the memories, its likely the final touches of the portrait may involve extracting whatever memories, knowledge and values the person being painted wants their portrait to have, and those parts of their person-hood is then transferred into the portrait.

[@reductostupefy]

I believe that certain memories are placed inside of the portraits and also the ability to retain bits of information along the way. That is why the portraits can keep passwords and learn new ones as well as give advice or help to staff and headmasters.

[@44redbeard]

I had thought maybe a portrait (of importance, like those hung at Hogworts or the Ministry of Magic) is a sentient version of a pensive, with who ever the painting of can add whatever memories they feel would/could be of useful help to those that come afterwards. Adding to that, the ability to continue to learn on his own through observation (sentient or quasi-sentient) Food for thought.

[@emankcin1701]

On a different, though feebly related subject: how come no-one suspected Dumbledore was dying? Probably the whole wizarding UK knew about his withered hand, considering his position etc. And why didn't Voldemort realise that.

[@gamingbeastlol]

He wasnt dying, he was perfectly fine even without a withered hand although he couldn't use his right hand to do as much as he could tho. Him growing weak was because of that potion, that's why he wanted harry to call snape to tell him about the potion

[@emankcin1701]

@@gamingbeastlol Yeah but you would think someone would question the effects of the curse. And Snape said the curse would strenghten over time, but there was no sign of it doing so at all.

[@jalexthedancer]

@@gamingbeastlol: False. Firstly, in a memory that Harry watches in Book 7, Snape said that, while he was able to temporarily prevent the curse from spreading, it couldn’t contain it indefinitely and that Dumbledore had (at best) a year left. Secondly, Dumbledore telling Harry specifically to fetch Severus actually had less to do with the Draught of Despair than you think. Dumbledore knew how weak he was, and recognized both that he was vulnerable and that Malfoy and the Death Eaters were going to try to kill him at any moment. Dumbledore made Snape give his word that when the time came, Snape would kill him swiftly and painlessly to preserve Draco’s soul and Dumbledore’s dignity, and to prevent the opportunity for other Death Eaters (like Bellatrix “who likes to play with her food”) to make him suffer. He needed Snape present because, being that it was near the end of the term, he guessed that Malfoy’s final attempt to kill him was imminent.

[@gamingbeastlol]

@@jalexthedancer I didnt think about him fetching snape would be for this reason and forgot that he only had a year left. You make me a bit wiser thank you :)

[@emankcin1701]

@@jalexthedancer It was a win-win situation for Albus. If the Death Eaters won the skirmish at the Tower, Snape would finally gain their full support. If the Order won, Dumbledore would show Harry how to destroy the locket (of course at the time he didn't know it was a fake).

[@jacksonchambers1722]

yoo hpt this is soom good content keep spitting more ideas like this out verrrrry fascinating 🤩

[@Nathan35077]

I like to imagine after dumbledore finished his portrait, he would consult with his own portrait when trying to figure out all the horcrux & Harry Potter connections and stuff 😂 just sitting there having a debate with himself, bouncing ideas off eachother 😂

[@brunos6599]

The only trustworthy specialist/journalist that I trust is myself.

[@marcelsgroot]

Lol why am I thinking of the councel of wells from the flash right now lol

[@Pixisu]

I love these videos. So wholesome.

[@JackSpadeTaylor]

I was just asking myself this yesterday xD glad I saw this :)

[@MrSpannners]

"Waving or smiling at the person who took the picture" as a picture of Sirius screams in the background

[@jameswest981]

Bellissimo,I ponder this almost daily,Dumbledore,s portrait seems so intelligent that,it could contain a piece of his soul,thank u for the deep dive on this subject.

[@wisnog99]

omg i asked this question in one of your previous videos!

[@rosebud7233]

This is fascinating!

[@Uzair_Of_Babylon465]

Fantastic video keep it up your doing amazing job

[@ElsaBorzoi]

Brilliant video. Thanks!

[@JoshuaGanoTyraxLightning]

Totally agree with the end of the Vid. Villains tend to have Egos bigger than Mountain Trolls and they would surely never consider wasting oodles of Galleons just 'wanting to be remembered'... they wanna never answer to Death in the first place. They'd view the idea of getting a Post-Mortem Portrait as, at best... pessimistic of their odds of success (Which would fly in the face of their aforementioned Ego...) and at worst take it as a 'suggestion' that they plan to fail & end up flat out insulted & angry. People tend to not wanna insult powerful Dark Lords most of the time.

[@pixywings]

The characters in the portraits can leve Hogwarts if they have another painting of them hanging somewhere else. This is shown in the Deathly Hallows when Ariana Dumbledore's portrait walks from Aberforth's home to the Room of requirement. There is also a quest in the Hogwarts Legacy game to find the frame of a portrait who's hanging in the library, but his other frame has been stolen and hidden in some ruins in the Scottish Highlands.

[@maksimilian528]

What's the background music in your videos? I really like it!

[@omgilovesteak6484]

Love your channel sir.

[@markgardner4426]

I always assumed that the portrait was somehow imbued with a snapshot of the personality, memories and knowledge of the subject. I kind of think of this as a benign counterpart of the horcrux. In some ways, as long as one of these types of portraits exists, the subject(s) in it are never completely dead. It could be possible to extract the memories from people and use these to create a living portrait if none existed previously but that would be an awful lot of work. It may be even possible that these portraits have some sort of tether to the soul(s) of their subject(s), so it really is the real person you are interacting with, just no longer in corporeal form. I think it is possible that there are portraits of Harry's parents, ancestors or even Sirius Black and Remus Lupin out there that will be found and interacted with.

[@SerJofreVeli]

So does Nicolas Flamel's book count as a portrait book or was it enchanted to talk to others like a zoom call?

[@thejohnjosh]

Charles Rookwood can go from the secret map room in Hogwarts to his portait in Rookwood Castle. Also they have full on sapience

[@JenneeB927]

Great video

[@DrHutOfHandcraft]

One thing that I am wondering about quite some time: Are there any portraits of Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff or Slytherin in the headmasters office? Since it was never mentioned, I guess there aren't any. But it seems a little odd to me, not only that there aren't any pictures in the headmasters office, but I can't remember that any portraits of them was ever mentioned. I mean you could assume that there would be a couple of them in the Hogwarts, since they were the founders.. right?

[@grazzmu]

I always thought that the capabilities of a portrait depends on the care they got when made. For example the photographs are made in a second and they are just like a gif. As for the paintings the longer they are made, the more care channels more magic into them. The longer process results in a more realistic portrait thus a more detailed personality.

[@baronvonpiano7625]

I love this theory!

[@stewg4661]

Voldemort didn't have a portrait because he never believed he would die, so having a portrait made of themselves to pass on knowledge after death made no sense.

[@robertmartin4449]

they could place memories in the pensive. I always thought they duplicated the headmasters memory’s and placed them in the paint. When they painted the person they’d just be a copy.

[@hunterkiller1440]

I wonder if words of a portrait could be used in the courts of Wizarding world. If their words are legally binding, could portraits take up government positions?

[@raghavparanjpe9556]

nah I dont think so.... coz they cannot think independently.... its like machines... computers... the only mattter u feed them will get stored... as our dear HP theory said they dont have ability to deal with any real life situations like a ghost or a living person

[@barbiquearea]

Can ghosts testify in court? Because if Moaning Myrtle can bring a case before the Wizengamot despite being dead, I think depending on the quality of the portrait and its level of sentience, maybe their words can be considered legally admissible.

[@kellysouter4381]

A ghost took up the job of history teacher, but that seems to be a one off.

[@ginantsfan5]

Most awesome vid!!!!!!!

[@thomasmoeller3446]

The four founders of Hogwarts enchanted the Sorting Hat. Slytherin enabled the girls bathroom sink to respond to parseltounge. Why would it be difficult to enchant the headmasters office to complete headmaster portraits to respect the authority of the current headmasters? Also, didn't some of the portraits resist Snape by not volunteering and following his requests to the letter and not, forgive me, the spirit of the requests?

[@kellysouter4381]

The office closed itself to Umbrage, to her great anger.

[@MordechaiHershoffyoutube]

the spirit is not part of the enchantment only the wording I think but what about the founders where were there portraits

[@gamingbeastlol]

Well, the portraits were never told that Snape killed dumbledore because it wasnt ever mentioned in the books of them talking about snape killing Dumbledore.

[@lutzvonhintermond274]

There was no plumbing system in Slytherins time. The sink was enchantet by Corvinus Gaunt in the 17th century, so the chamber of secrets could still be found.

[@PhantomSavage]

I always wondered why no one just approached Salazar Slytherin's portrait and outright asked where the Chamber of Secrets was. Assuming, of course, Salazar even had a portrait made, or if the other Hogwarts founders decided to keep it after he left, but if he did I'm sure it'd probably have a ton of valuable information. It probably wouldn't talk to anyone but a pure blood, but I could definitely see someone like Draco or even Snape tricking it into telling some of its secrets.

[@jocelynbyrne4313]

Cut the wizarding artists not just use the memories from the pensive for Dumbledore‘s Portrait that would certainly work pretty well mix paint with memories

[@FatRonaldo1]

Magical photos can interact to some extent, as in OOTF Moody made the people in the photo of the original order shuffle around so Harry could see the characters at the back

[@shsav2012]

I agree with the iPhone reference and was thinking it for a bit b4 it was said

[@rhilou32]

3:01 - They can in fact move between any portraits of themselves. Phineas Nigellus moves between the portrait in the Headmaster's Office, and the portrait of his that was hung in Grimauld Place on many occasions, including when Arthur was attacked and when the Trio were out searching for horcruxes - the latter being how Snape was able to locate them to leave the sword for Harry (because Hermione shoved the portrait in her bag).

[@rhilou32]

OK, you bring this up later in the video, so I'm not sure why you said at the start, that they couldn't leave their frames within Hogwarts?

[@lewisbull891]

Was it Snape who put Dumbledores portait in the headmasters office?. I wonder if he spoke to the portrait during his time as headmaster.

[@barbarazirger7732]

He probably didn't put it there. All headmaster's portraits go there when they die..... Snape's is there too. Harry made sure of it. And yes, Snape conversed with Dumbledore all the time. Dumbledore wanted Snape to be the headmaster so he could protect the children, the best he could. He also told Snape about giving Harry the Gryffindor sword.

[@lewisbull891]

@@barbarazirger7732 Good to know thanks 👍

[@Greytruth2]

I think of a portrait as a magical sort of AI. The fat lady was capable of talking about Sirius Black and the portraits of the Keepers in Hogwarts Legacy (if we consider that canon) are all capable of talking about current world events. They're not sentient so to speak since they lack the soul of the wizard or witch they represent but many seem capable of adapting within the behavioural perametres of said witch or wizard. They're mimics I guess and depending on who they represent, they become even more convincing/coherent.

[@ageoflistening]

They could move from building to building as long as they had a pre-existing portrait there. There was a few cases where a Headmaster also had one in the hospital and another had one in the ministry, so news and information could be spread or gleaned that way.

[@gamezx]

"Why didnt voldemort ever have a painting created" 2:50 - I mean there he is off to the right XD Seriously though, even if voldemort wasnt willing to consider the possibility he could die, grindelwald wasnt after immortality so he knew his time would eventually end. So yeah he SHOULD have had a painting made to continue his work afterwards. I mean they even said in the movies he was so convincing they had to cut out his tongue just to stop him swaying people at all. It's quite likely he infact did but after his defeat, dumbledore took it and kept it hidden away for this exact reason

[@kasey670]

This was the perfect opportunity for you to use the Paint and Memory quote from cursed child.

[@hangeishot7919]

Harry Potter Theory. Another great video.

[@KatrinEgilsdottir]

At 2:55 is that voldemort in that painting of the bald guy on bottom right 🤔

[@scottstout7595]

All portraits can move between all of their frames in the world and interact with everyone. The Fat Lady identifies Sirius as the one trying to gain access to the common room, then her temporary replacement, Sir Cadugion (bad spelling) frequently challenges students to duals and changes passwords on his own. Then Dumbledore’s sisters painting travels between the Room of Requirement and the Hogs Head, so it’s not only Headmasters who can do that.

[@lajvanegmond]

in Order of the Phoenix Moody shows Harry a photo of the old order. he jabs the picture so the people in the front make way to show the people in the back. that is not a loop.

[@ravenclawharrypotteredits3044]

I never knowed this!

[@LordMetalSonic1987]

So these portraits are similar to Light Capsules from the Mega Man X games. The Dr. Light hologram turned out to not be a recording, but a fully functional AI that was capable of not only bestowing powers (Armor parts) on X, but also offering him moral support and advice based on current world events (The Great Repliforce War, The Earth Crisis, The Nightmare Crisis, etc.).

[@johnschaefer9655]

I think casting out memories with the wand and bottling them up somehow would incline this to a property in which you may add memories to said portrait

[@ItzTheBl4dez]

late to the party here but if i recall a portrait travels from dumbledors office to Grimmauld Place in london after harry tells dumbledor about arthur weasley being attacked while on patrol at the ministry so i think they can leave the castle but only to other portraits of them selfs

[@ubergeek1968]

I would think that someone like Voldemort would have had his maigal portrait done and then used it to create a horcrux... That would be an excellent way to preserve his desired immortality

[@artman2oo3]

Before photography, were regular paintings of magical people done? Like without enchanted paint? Or before magical photography were all portraits of people like the house portraits? Somewhat interactive?

[@kylemohs8728]

For the last question: I'm inclined to believe that even if the figures *can* leave their frames, they would still logically be tied to it in a way, and it may very well be possible to destroy the image in order to avoid Dark Wizards from getting to influential after their death.

[@claragomezb.7849]

Here’s my question: Why did the 4 founders not leave their portraits? They should be the first 4 in the headmaster’s office.

[@michaelschaaf5302]

I believe that if the same artist paints multiple portraits of the same subject they will be able to go between the portraits like Nigeleus black. The witch that was the headmaster and a healer at Saint Mungo‘s and even the portrait for the muggle ministers

[@eranshachar9954]

Good video. Maybe if I would see your portrait he would tell me your name. Please do a video about the fact that Peter Pettigrew was secretly team Voldemort from the start. Movie watchers don't know that, for their sake I think it could be a good video.

[@Acore-ly9qx]

I’ve been a hardcore fan of harry potter for about 12 years now, i used to watch your videos so much probably 4-5 years ago at this point. I randomly got you on my recommended and i’m hooked again. Your videos have gone so much up in quality and yiur narration is actually captivating

[@HarryPotterTheory]

Thank-you!

[@Shred_The_Weapon]

I distinctly recall wondering as I finished reading Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince when it was new how the portrait of Albus Dumbledore simply materialized in the headmaster’s study after his death. That being said, one thing I imagined after first reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was that the rendition of Dumbledore in his portrait was the one that Harry interacted with in the Purgatory which took the shape of King’s Cross Station. That isn’t so likely within the context of the story though, if the painted portraits were supposed to be infused with memories of the subject.

[@pedro-mf8ff]

Maybe they add a fragment of consciousness to the portrait like they do with the pensive

[@shorgravan]

The "Hogwarts exception" in that regards can be explained if you accept either that there'e one original "master" frame that the portrait is initially painted on and has this special role. Alternatively, that could be linked to a magical oath Hogwarts headmasters have to swear when they first take their function.

[@rickgibson652]

Doesn't Areanna Dumbledor move from a portrait inside Hogwarts to another outside of Hogwarts?

[@nathanvosburgh718]

yeah she does she went to inform Longbottom that Harry was back

[@chickpea3609]

Seems like they can keep memories too though. In deathly hallows Hermione had a frame that belonged to the headmaster Black. She asked him questions about the sword of Gryffindor and then when he returned to his painting in the headmasters office, he told Snape where they were, so he could leave the sword for Harry

[@kyleking7718]

Porteara can definitely leave the castle ( example the ones in the video game and I think some ministry ones and dumbledoor) but when moving out of the castle I think they have restrictions and it has to be one of their portents or some thing.

[@vertoatrum]

I had a theory that some of the paint to make the special portraits contained blood of the wizard, like a moving, sentient phylactery

[@myria2834]

I just work under the assumption that portraits are a window into the afterlife, granting those who have died a way to interact with the living, in a way that does not violate the natural order and anger Death. Easily explains why they can freely travel between frames, be affected by gravity when they're tilted, and interact with people in a completely natural way. These long deceased witches and wizards wished to be able to watch over future generations, so they commissioned an enchanted portrait before death, that gives their soul a place to return. (Also explains where they go, when their portrait frame is completely empty. They are out socializing with others in the afterlife, and the portrait is simply a window in one of the rooms of their ethereal home.) I suspect that the reason Harry's parents don't have a portrait is because they never had the opportunity to contemplate their mortality, and desire to be there for their son after death, until it was too late to commission such an artist to link a portrait frame to their souls, and such works would need to be performed before death, as the soul is completely out of reach at that point. Meanwhile the non-sentient pictures in photo albums and news articles are simply an enchanted recording of a small window of time.

[@jefferyterhune8451]

Is this how Tom Riddle found the CoS? From Salazars painting?

[@duphasdan]

I notice in this video that the portrait of the fat lady is different from the one in the Hogwarts game. Also, the placement is different. The moving staircase is also different. I get the sense that there probably was a renovation between the times of the game and movies.

[@GCJACK83]

I think the paintings work on what's called the "stone tape" theory. However, while the photos can only catch a single moment, the paintings are special in that the actual spirit of the wizard or witch it's of is attached to the painting, meaning they can interact directly with people by speaking to them, and remember people who have been born long after they themselves have died. Of course, this means that each portrait is a wealth of knowledge in and of itself.

[@BlindRobotDragon]

I've often wondered if the idea for the pensive, a tool for storing memories, came from headmaster/headmistress portraits. Sometimes I've considered the possibility that there might be some sort of charm or something that allows a person to extract/copy actual memories of the subject of one of these paintings, then transfer the aforementioned memories directly to the picture, as opposed to the subject having to spend large amounts of time with their painted likeness; it could be far simpler to just periodically infuse their paintings with batches of memories of the living person's choosing. The memories can't be viewed, as is the case with the pensive, but perhaps they can give these paintings a touch of realism. Anecdotes from the wizard or witch's life can be shared by the painting just as they could by the actual person whilst said person was still alive, because they are drawing from exact experiences, remembered just as the dead witch/wizard would recall them, immortalized in painted form forever. Maybe I'm wrong... this is just a theory I developed on the fly.

[@Inglescomgus]

When the movies came out i thought i would be amazing to have moving photos. Now, we have gifs

[@grimlocktv3169]

Imagine all the greatest world leaders of the past in portraits giving advice and history knowledge to the current time.

[@IsaacLevy-td4sm]

Portraits could work like the pensive. People might be able to remove memories and store them in the paintings.

[@judastaboo9373]

Bro you read my mind! I was watching the half blood prince yesterday and when I saw the portrait of dumbledore I had the same question!!!

[@dustydurant2746]

I think that the harry potter franchise hogwarts headmasters portrait work like a video with a animation charm added on to it to make it move and talk to people telling what do by giving them advice on whatever problems comes to them so that they can deal with it of course the same rules apply to the portraits outside of the headmaster office and all over hogwarts

[@justsomepersononyoutube9271]

What if Voldemort came back how would the wizarding world react

[@TheLumpyShield]

6:11 Then how do you explain The Keepers in HL that learn of the Goblin Rebellion and help the MC plan accordingly. They act as if they are actually alive.

[@skyfernandez5059]

They should draw prime tom and grindy to make a 1st witch and wizard war of portraits world.

[@nigelnightmare4160]

Are the moving portraits a form of Horcrux?

[@noahfox4990]

If there are identical pictures such as the chocolate frogs, is it the same picture entity projected across multiple copies or a bunch of individuals? Are the frogs pictures or paintings

[@SirDobbsdaGr8]

I always assumed that memories from a wizard’s pensieve was used in the paint so the painting would have those memories too. Idk I’m probably wrong.

[@PhxSml]

Could have been nice to have a scene during the battle of Hogwarts where the painting fight back by all screaming at the same time, maybe led by the fat lady. Defending their home too

[@kellysouter4381]

Some time ago I read somewhere that Spinners End is on the outskirts of Manchester. Is that true?

[@RpMUniverse]

2:58 didn’t Dumbledore asked Phineas Nigellus Black to visit the frame in the Number 12 Grimerald place?

[@mauritsponnette]

I feel like there's a bit more to the portraits than their living counterparts just telling them what they know while they are still alive. Since they're wizards and witches, they might have a more magical way of transferring their consciousness into the portraits, maybe a bit like feeding their memory into a pensieve, but instead of the pensieve it's the portrait. Real life monks and other spiritual or magic-associated people have been known to 'upload' or leave behind their consciousness and memories in certain places (mountain tops and caves, tree clearings, standing stones, towers and holy buildings etc.), so it seems like a plausible explanation for the portraits as well. Maybe the more powerful the wizard, the more conscious their portrait, explaining why simple photographs are basically just moving pictures, since almost no magic was performed on them except for making them move.

[@3114bsad]

Iv always thought that the portraits are embedded with memories from a pensive, a "copy" of the mind of a person

[@fufumanthebest6254]

Well, if we go by the movies, there is actually one portrait of Voldemort in one scene in the Prisoner of Azkaban. The scene is, where Seamus and Harry try to give the fat lady the password, Fortuna Major, and she tries to break a glass with her voice. I don't think this portrait would work the same way as the Headmaster portraits but it is still very interesting to see that there is a portrait of Voldemort in Hogwarts.

[@gabesgaming7064]

Put that light out!

[@idapetersson345]

We're trying to sleep here!

[@Lemon-uz1br]

Hi thus was useful

[@yellowflame1000]

At 2:54 is that lord voldemort at the bottom?

[@Threesnap]

Unless im mistaken, I have never read that wizarding portraits are painted. Also at the end of the half blood prince after dumbledore is killed, literally minutes after his death his portrait is hanging on the wall in his office. As harry walks into the office it's the first thing he notices. Also at the e d of the deathly hallows harry cryptic says the dumbledores portrait "the object that was hidden inside of the snitch was dropped inside the forest, I have no plans to return for it" and dumbledore asks if anyone else knows where it fell to which harry says no. So this should show that the portraits have all of the persons memories up till the moment of death. I half seam to remember in I think the order of the phoenix harry expecting a portrait of his godfather to be there after his killed, and Being told by the other black portrait in the house that it's solely up to the witch or wizard themselves if they decide to come back as either ghost or portrait. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I didn't just re read the whole series 2 months ago, nevertheless I may be wrong.

[@Bruce1983]

@2:45. Voldermort casually appearing at Hogwarts

[@curstdragon]

Pictures in the books don't run on a loop. A photograph version of Harry fights with Lockhart to get out of the frame of the photo. Something Harry wasn't trying to do when the photo was taken.