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Up for sale "British Painter" William Blake Richmond 2X3.5 Card Mounted.
ES-7164E
Sir
William Blake 1842 – 11 February 1921) was a British painter, sculptor and a
designer of stained glass and mosaic. He is best known for his portrait work
and decorative mosaics in St Paul's Cathedral in London. Richmond was influential in the early stages of
the Arts and Crafts Movement in
his selection of bold colours and materials for the mosaics in St Paul's
Cathedral and in his collaboration with James Powell and Sons,
glass makers, in creating new colours and materials. This new material expanded
the glassmaker's palette and was favoured by artists of the Arts and Crafts
Movement, primarily in the creation of stained-glass windows and decorative art
work. Richmond was the Slade Professor of Fine Art at the University of Oxford from
1878 to 1883, succeeding his friend and mentor John Ruskin. William Blake Richmond was born on 29 November
1842 in Marylebone.[1] His father, George Richmond RA, was an important
portrait painter; his mother was Julia Tatham (1811–1881). He was named after a
close friend of his father, the poet William Blake.
Richmond was tutored at home due to health problems as a child. In 1858,
at the age of 14, Richmond enrolled at the Royal Academy of Art where
he studied drawing and painting for three years. He also spent time at John
Ruskin's house, where he was given private art lessons by the prominent artist.
In 1859, Richmond painted his first picture, Enid and Geraint. He
sold the painting for £20, spending the money to tour Italy for six weeks with
a tutor. His time spent viewing the Old Master paintings in Italy had a major impact on
Richmond's development as an artist and later career. His favourite Italian
painters Richmond became a
successful portrait painter at an early age. In 1861, at the age of 19, he
exhibited his first major work for the Royal Academy. The painting, a portrait
of his two brothers, was highly praised by Ruskin. That year, Richmond
continued to work in portraits, and study anatomy at St Bartholomew's Hospital. Richmond's widely regarded portraits led to several
commissions, a few of which took him to the north of England for several
months.
Richmond was elected to the Royal Academy in
1861, where he continued to exhibit his work until 1877. In 1865, Richmond
returned to Italy, where he lived in Rome for
four years and studied art.[3] While in Italy, he met the painters Frederic Leighton and Giovanni Costa, both of whose work he admired. When Richmond
returned to England, he exhibited A Procession in Honour of Bacchus at
the Royal Academy in 1869.
In 1877, Richmond left the Royal Academy and began exhibiting his
paintings with the Grosvenor Gallery, where he exhibited until 1878. In 1878
Richmond became Slade Professor of Fine Art at Oxford University, succeeding Ruskin. During his tenure,
Richmond was responsible for twelve lectures a year at the school. A few
lectures Richmond gave on his favourite artist Michelangelo led to a conflict
with Ruskin, who had little regard for that artist. The disagreement between
the two men led Richmond to resign his position after five years, although he
and Ruskin were able to continue their long-standing friendship.
Richmond travelled often to Italy, Greece, Spain and Egypt in the 1880s.
He would spend a few months each year exploring new areas, absorbing the
history and mythology of the region, and making numerous drawings and coloured
sketches.
In 1888, Richmond resumed his relationship with the Royal Academy when he
was elected an Associate Member (ARA), and was then further elected a Royal
Academician (RA) in 1895. He served as Professor of Painting at the Academy
from 1895 to 1899 and from 1909 to 1911, and continued to exhibit with the
Academy until 1916. He was elected Senior RA at the Academy in 1920.