Francis Coates Jones (1857–1932) was an American painter from a wealthy Baltimore family who studied in Europe under painters such as

Bouguereau William-Adolphe Bouguereau (; 30 November 1825 – 19 August 1905) was a French academic painter. In his realistic genre paintings, he used mythological themes, making modern interpretations of classical subjects, with an emphasis on the female ...

. He is known for his paintings of women at ease in richly decorated interiors or in flower-filled gardens.

Early years

Francis Coates Jones was born in 1857 in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, Maryland, into a wealthy family. He attended a Quaker school in Baltimore until he was fourteen. His elder brother was the landscape painter

Hugh Bolton Jones Hugh Bolton Jones (20 October 1848 – 24 September 1927) was an American landscape painter. He grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, where he received his early training as an artist. While studying in New York he was strongly influenced by Frederic E ...

(1848–1927).

Europe

In 1876 the Jones brothers visited Europe, where Francis became interested in becoming an artist. In London the two brothers stayed with

Edwin Austin Abbey Edwin Austin Abbey (April 1, 1852August 1, 1911) was an American muralist, illustrator, and painter. He flourished at the beginning of what is now referred to as the "golden age" of illustration, and is best known for his drawings and paintings ...

(1852–1911). Jones then spent nearly a year in Pont-Aven, Brittany, where there was a colony of American artists. He made friends there with

Thomas Hovenden Thomas Hovenden (December 28, 1840 – August 14, 1895), was an Irish artist and teacher who spent much of his life in the United States. He painted realistic quiet family scenes, narrative subjects and often depicted African Americans. Biog ...

(1840–1895). In the fall of 1877 Jones moved to Paris. He taught himself drawing, then was admitted to the antique class of

Henri Lehmann Henri Lehmann (; 14 April 1814 – 30 March 1882) was a German-born French historical painter and portraitist. Life Born Heinrich Salem Lehmann in Kiel, in the Duchy of Holstein, he received his first art tuition from his father Leo Lehmann ( ...

at the

École des Beaux-Arts École des Beaux-Arts (; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth century ...

. In 1878 the two brothers traveled to Spain and Morocco. They met their parents and sister, and made a tour of Europe. Jones returned to Paris and enrolled in the

Académie Julian The Académie Julian () was a private art school for painting and sculpture founded in Paris, France, in 1867 by French painter and teacher Rodolphe Julian (1839–1907) that was active from 1868 through 1968. It remained famous for the number a ...

. There he studied under William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825–1905) and

Jules Joseph Lefebvre Jules Joseph Lefebvre (; 14 March 183624 February 1911) was a French figure painter, educator and theorist. Early life Lefebvre was born in Tournan-en-Brie, Seine-et-Marne, on 14 March 1836. He entered the École nationale supérieure des Bea ...

(1836–1911). He made sketching tours in Italy, Switzerland and France. Jones continued to study in France until 1881 apart from a trip to Baltimore in the summer of 1879 and a period in the winter of 1879–80 when he painted a military panorama in London. He returned to New York in 1881 and shared a studio in the

Sherwood Studio Building The Sherwood Studio Building was an artists' apartment building at 58 West 57th Street, at the southeast corner with Sixth Avenue (Avenue of the Americas) in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The building was constructed in 1879 as artists' a ...

with his brother. In 1882 he was elected to the Society of American Artists. He then returned to Paris.

New York

Jones finally moved back to the United States and settled in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1884, where his work as a figure painter was quickly recognized. Although he did not have to work for a living, he taught portraiture at the

Art Students League of New York The Art Students League of New York is an art school at 215 West 57th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may stu ...

. He also obtained commissions for illustrations from ''

Scribner's Monthly ''Scribner's Monthly: An Illustrated Magazine for the People'' was an illustrated American literary periodical published from 1870 until 1881. Following a change in ownership in 1881 of the company that had produced it, the magazine was relaunch ...

'' and ''

The Century Magazine ''The Century Magazine'' was an illustrated monthly magazine first published in the United States in 1881 by The Century Company of New York City, which had been bought in that year by Roswell Smith and renamed by him after the Century Associatio ...

''. In October 1893 ''Scribner's'' published a set of his views of historic houses in Washington. From 1895 Jones painted murals. In the summers he would make painting expeditions to

the Berkshires The Berkshires () are a highland geologic region located in the western parts of Massachusetts and northwest Connecticut. The term "Berkshires" is normally used by locals in reference to the portion of the Vermont-based Green Mountains that ex ...

South Egremont, Massachusetts The South Egremont Village Historic District encompasses most of the village of South Egremont, Massachusetts, a well-preserved village whose architecture has seen relatively little alteration since the 1840s. It is located along Massachusetts ...

. By the 1890s Jones had a solid reputation and began to take a leading role in the art world of New York. Jones taught at the National Academy of Design for over thirty years. For twenty two years he was treasurer of the National Academy of Design. From 1917 to 1930 Jones was a trustee of the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

. Around 1907 Jones, his brother and their invalid sister Louise moved into an expensively furnished studio and home at 33 West Sixty-seventh Street in Manhattan. In 1929 Jones experienced a stroke that left him acutely paralyzed. He died in 1932.

Work

In his early work Jones depicted genre scenes in richly decorated interiors. His technique was precise, academic and detailed. He was always interested in costumes and decorations. He became attracted to themes of classical antiquity, and started to paint subjects in classical costumes surrounded by decorative objects from that era. His later work showed the influence of

impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...

. These more loosely executed works after 1910 often showed women at ease in outdoor as well as indoor settings. At the 1885 annual show of the National Academy of Design Jones's picture ''Exchanging Confidences'' won the Thomas B. Clarke Prize for best figure composition. Jones also won prizes from the Saint Louis Exposition and the Panama–Pacific International Exposition of 1915. His works is exhibited at the

Brooklyn Museum The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 1.5 million objects. Located near the Prospect Heights, Crown H ...

, the

and the Wichita Art Museum. The

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

also holds his work. Coates Jones, Francis (1857-1932) Mother and child, c.1885.jpg, Mother and child, c.1885 Francis Coates Jones - The book.jpg, The book Francis Coates Jones - Mother and daughters playing chess.jpg, Mother and daughters playing chess

References

Sources

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Francis Coates 1857 births 1932 deaths 19th-century American painters American male painters 20th-century American painters Artists from Baltimore Painters from Maryland 19th-century American male artists 20th-century American male artists Members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters