Thomas Heaphy (painter, 1775)
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Thomas Heaphy (born December 29, 1775 in London , England , † October 23, 1835 in London ) was an English watercolor , portrait and miniature painter . He was a co-founder of the Royal Society of British Artists and its first president.
Early years
Thomas Heaphy was born on December 29, 1775 to the married couple John Gerrard Heaphy and his French wife Katharine Gerard in the parish of St Giles Cripplegate in London . According to one story, Heaphy's father came from a noble family and his mother came from a Huguenot family that operated the silk weaving trade in Spitalfields , London .
Heaphy showed an early interest in drawing , but instead had to train as a dyer and then worked as an engraver . In his spare time he attended a drawing school run by the painter John Boyne near Queen Square in Bloomsbury , a district in the London Borough of Camden .
family
In 1800 he married Mary Stevenson , the sister of a fellow student. With her he had two sons and three daughters. Two of his daughters, Mary Anne Musgrave and Elizabeth Murray , also devoted themselves to painting, his first son Thomas (Frank) Heaphy became a painter and his second son Charles Heaphy later became well known as a draftsman, painter, soldier, surveyor and researcher in New Zealand . After 1814 the family settled at 8 St John's Wood Road , near Regent's Park in London . Heaphy's wife died in 1820 . He later married again. There were no children from her marriage to Harriet Jane Mason .
Career as a painter
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Heaphy himself exhibited his first recognized work, two portraits in oil, at the Royal Academy of Arts in 1797 , but soon switched to watercolor painting, where he saw more of his talent and a future. He studied at the Royal Academy Schools , founded in London in 1769 , exhibited his works at the Royal Academy of Arts between 1800 and 1804 and received his first major recognition in 1804 for his work " The Portland Fish-Girl ". In 1807 he became a member of the Water Color Society . He received further prestige and attention in 1809 with his work " Hastings Fish Market ".
He then turned back to portrait painting and portrayed well-known personalities such as Princess of Wales , Princess Charlotte, Prince Leopold and, in 1812, Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington , the latter in the British camp during the Peninsular War (1807-1814) on the Iberian Peninsula . There and later back in England, he received further orders to portray British officers.
In 1812 he gave up his membership in the Water Color Society , probably also because portrait painting in oil gave him sufficient income and social recognition. In 1823 Heaphy founded the Royal Society of British Artists along with other artists and became its first president for a year in 1824. In the same year he exhibited nine of his works in the first major exhibition of the newly founded society. In 1829 he resigned from the artists' association because of a falling out. In 1831 he traveled to Italy and devoted himself to the works of old masters, which he copied for study purposes. Back in England he only painted a little. He died at his home on October 23, 1835 and was buried in Bunhill Fields Cemetery in the heart of London .
Became famous Heaphy and above all by its miniature painting in watercolors, which he exercised his life. Known here are " Miniatur of a Lady " from 1803 and " Miniatur of an unknown man " from 1815. It is known from a monograph by WT Whitley that Heaphy sold his portraits in oil for 12 to 15 guineas , 12 to 40 guineas for watercolors and 10 to 50 guineas for miniatures. However, he was able to sell individual pictures at a much higher price. The picture " Hastings Fish Market " is said to have been sold in 1809 for 450 guineas to the daughter of the collector William Wells of Redleaf from Kent .
literature
- M. Bryan : Heaphy, Thomas . In: Dictionary of Painters and Engravers . 1886 (English).
- S. Redgrave : Heaphy, Thomas . In: A Dictionary of Artists of the English School . 1878 (English).
- John Denison Champlin : Heaphy, Thomas . In: Cyclopedia of painters and Paintings . Volume II . Bernard Quaritch , London 1888 (English).
- Freeman Marius O'Donoghue : Heaphy, Thomas (1775-1835) . In: Dictionary of National Biography 1885-1900 . Volume 25 . Elder Smith & Co. , London 1891 (English).
- D. Foskett : Heaphy, Thomas . In: The Dictionary of British Miniature Painters . Volume 1 , 1972 (English).
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ A b John Denison Champlin : Heaphy, Thomas . In: Cyclopedia of painters and Paintings . 1888, p. 224 .
- ^ S. Redgrave : Heaphy, Thomas . In: A Dictionary of Artists of the English School . 1878 (English).
- ^ A b D. Foskett : Heaphy, Thomas . In: The Dictionary of British Miniature Painters . Volume 1 , 1972 (English).
- ^ FM O'Donoghue : Heaphy, Thomas . In: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography . 2007 (English, online edition).
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Heaphy, Thomas |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | English watercolor, portrait and miniature painter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 29, 1775 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | London , England |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 23, 1835 |
| Place of death | London |