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George Stubbs (25 August 1724 – 10 July 1806) was an English painter, best known for his paintings of horses. Self-trained, Stubbs learnt his skills independently from other great artists of the 18th century such as
Reynolds Reynolds may refer to: Places Australia *Hundred of Reynolds, a cadastral unit in South Australia *Hundred of Reynolds (Northern Territory), a cadastral unit in the Northern Territory of Australia United States * Reynolds, Mendocino County, Calif ...
or
Gainsborough Gainsborough or Gainsboro may refer to: Places * Gainsborough, Ipswich, Suffolk, England ** Gainsborough Ward, Ipswich * Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, a town in England ** Gainsborough (UK Parliament constituency) * Gainsborough, New South Wales, ...
. Stubbs' output includes history paintings, but his greatest skill was in painting animals, perhaps influenced by his love and study of anatomy. His series of paintings on the theme of a lion attacking a horse are early and significant examples of the Romantic movement that emerged in the late 18th century. His painting, ''
Whistlejacket ''Whistlejacket'' is an oil on canvas painting from about 1762 by the British artist George Stubbs showing the Marquess of Rockingham's racehorse approximately at life-size, rearing up against a plain background. The canvas is large, lacks any ...
'' hangs in the National Gallery, London.


Biography

Stubbs was born in
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
, the son of a
currier A currier is a specialist in the leather processing industry. After the tanning process, the currier applies techniques of dressing, finishing and colouring to a tanned hide to make it strong, flexible and waterproof. The leather is stretched an ...
, or leather-dresser, John Stubbs, and his wife Mary. Egerton, Judy (2007).
George Stubbs, Painter: Catalogue raisonné
'. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press. . p. 10.
Information on his life until the age of 35 or so is sparse, relying almost entirely on notes made by
Ozias Humphry Ozias Humphry (or Humphrey) (8 September 1742 – 9 March 1810) was a leading English painter of portrait miniatures, later oils and pastels, of the 18th century. He was elected to the Royal Academy in 1791, and in 1792 he was appointed ''P ...
, a fellow artist and friend; Humphry's informal memoir, which was not intended for publication, was based on a series of private conversations he had with Stubbs around 1794, when Stubbs was 70 years old, and Humphry 52. Stubbs worked at his father's trade until the age of 15 or 16, at which point he told his father that he wished to become a painter.Egerton (2007), p. 12
While initially resistant, Stubbs's father (who died not long after in 1741), eventually acquiesced in his son's choice of a career path, on the condition that he could find an appropriate mentor. Stubbs subsequently approached the Lancashire painter and engraver
Hamlet Winstanley Hamlet Winstanley (1698–1756) was an English painter, engraver and art agent. As a painter, he was mainly active as a portraitist and copyist. Life Winstanley was born in Warrington, Lancashire, the second son of William Winstanley, a trades ...
, and was briefly engaged by him in a sort of apprenticeship relationship, probably not more than several weeks in duration.Egerton (2007), p. 13
Having initially demonstrated his abilities and agreed to do some copying work, Stubbs had access to and opportunity to study the collection at
Knowsley Hall Knowsley Hall is a stately home near Liverpool in the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, Merseyside, England. It is the ancestral home of the Stanley family, the Earls of Derby. The hall is surrounded by of parkland, which contains the Knowsley ...
near Liverpool, the estate where Winstanley was then residing; however, he soon left when he came into conflict with the older artist over exactly which pictures he could work on copying. Thereafter as an artist he was self-taught. He had had a passion for
anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having it ...
from his childhood, and in or around 1744, he moved to York, in the North of England, to pursue his ambition to study the subject under experts. In York, from 1745 to 1753, he worked as a portrait painter, and studied human anatomy under the surgeon Charles Atkinson, at
York County Hospital York County Hospital (1740–1977) was a hospital in York, England. The building, which is grade II listed, has been converted for residential use. History The hospital has its origins in a small hospital established in Monkgate in April 1740. ...
,"Chronology" (p. 12–13), in: ''George Stubbs, 1724–1806''. Tate Gallery Publications;
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
. Salem, NH: Salem House, 1985. . Catalogue of an exhibition held at the Tate Gallery, London, 17 October 1984 – 6 January1985, and at the Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, Conn., 13 February – 7 April 1985; paintings for the exhibition selected by Judy Egerton, Assistant Keeper of the British Collection (Foreword).
One of his earliest surviving works is a set of illustrations for a textbook on
midwifery Midwifery is the health science and health profession that deals with pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period (including care of the newborn), in addition to the sexual and reproductive health of women throughout their lives. In many ...
by John Burton, ''Essay towards a Complete New System of Midwifery'', published in 1751. In 1754 Stubbs visited Italy. Forty years later he told Ozias Humphry that his motive for going to Italy was, "to convince himself that nature was and is always superior to art whether Greek or Roman, and having renewed this conviction he immediately resolved upon returning home". In 1756 he rented a farmhouse in the village of
Horkstow Horkstow is a village and civil parish in North Lincolnshire, England, south-west from Barton-upon-Humber, south from South Ferriby and north from Brigg. It lies on the B1204, and east from the navigable River Ancholme.
, Lincolnshire, and spent 18 months dissecting horses, assisted by his common-law wife, Mary Spencer. He moved to London in about 1759 and in 1766 published ''The anatomy of the Horse''. The original drawings are now in the collection of the Royal Academy. Even before his book was published, Stubbs's drawings were seen by leading aristocratic patrons, who recognised that his work was more accurate than that of earlier horse painters such as
James Seymour James Seymour (1702–1752) was an English painter, widely recognized for his equestrian art. Seymour was born in London. His father was an amateur artist and art dealer, whose other business dealings (as a banker, goldsmith, and diamond ...
,
Peter Tillemans Peter Tillemans ( 1684 – 5 December 1734)Noakes, Aubrey, ''Sportsmen in a Landscape'' (Ayer Publishing, 1971, )pp. 47–56: ''Peter Tillemans and Early Newmarket''at books.google.com, accessed 7 February 2009. ONDB writes: "In 1733 Tillemans re ...
and
John Wootton John Wootton (c.1686– 13 November 1764)Deuchar, S. (2003). "Wootton, John". Grove Art Online. was an English painter of sporting subjects, battle scenes and landscapes, and illustrator. Life Born in Snitterfield, Warwickshire (near Stratfo ...
. In 1759 the 3rd Duke of Richmond commissioned three large pictures from him, and his career was soon secure. By 1763 he had produced works for several more dukes and other lords and was able to buy a house in
Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it me ...
, a fashionable part of London, where he lived for the rest of his life. A famous work, ''
Whistlejacket ''Whistlejacket'' is an oil on canvas painting from about 1762 by the British artist George Stubbs showing the Marquess of Rockingham's racehorse approximately at life-size, rearing up against a plain background. The canvas is large, lacks any ...
'', a painting of the thoroughbred race horse rising on his hind legs, commissioned by the 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, is now in the
National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director ...
in London. This and two other paintings carried out for Rockingham break with convention in having plain backgrounds. Throughout the 1760s he produced a wide range of individual and group portraits of horses, sometimes accompanied by hounds. He often painted horses with their grooms, whom he always painted as individuals. Meanwhile, he also continued to accept commissions for portraits of people, including some group portraits. From 1761 to 1776 he exhibited at the
Society of Artists of Great Britain The Society of Artists of Great Britain was founded in London in May 1761 by an association of artists in order to provide a venue for the public exhibition of recent work by living artists, such as was having success in the long-established P ...
, but in 1775 he switched his allegiance to the recently founded but already more prestigious Royal Academy of Arts. Stubbs also painted more exotic animals including lions, tigers, giraffes, monkeys, and rhinoceroses, which he was able to observe in private menageries. His painting of a kangaroo was the first glimpse of this animal for many 18th-century Britons. He became preoccupied with the theme of a wild horse threatened by a lion and produced several variations on this theme. These and other works became well known at the time through
engraving Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an in ...
s of Stubbs's work, which appeared in increasing numbers in the 1770s and 1780s. Stubbs also painted historical pictures, but these are much less well regarded. From the late 1760s he produced some work on enamel. In the 1770s
Josiah Wedgwood Josiah Wedgwood (12 July 1730 – 3 January 1795) was an English potter, entrepreneur and abolitionist. Founding the Wedgwood company in 1759, he developed improved pottery bodies by systematic experimentation, and was the leader in the indus ...
developed a new and larger type of enamel panel at Stubbs's request. Stubbs hoped to achieve commercial success with his paintings in enamel, but the venture left him in debt. Also in the 1770s he painted single portraits of dogs for the first time, while also receiving an increasing number of commissions to paint hunts with their packs of hounds. He remained active into his old age. In the 1780s he produced a pastoral series called ''Haymakers and Reapers'', and in the early 1790s he enjoyed the patronage of the
Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
, whom he painted on horseback in 1791. His last project, begun in 1795, was ''A comparative anatomical exposition of the structure of the human body with that of a tiger and a common fowl'', fifteen engravings from which appeared between 1804 and 1806. The project was left unfinished upon Stubbs's death. He died at the age of 81 on 10 July 1806 at the home he had lived in since 1763, No.24 Somerset Street, near Portman Square,
Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropolitan borough, it me ...
, central London. He was buried on 18 July in the graveyard of
St Marylebone Parish Church St Marylebone Parish Church is an Anglican church on the Marylebone Road in London. It was built to the designs of Thomas Hardwick in 1813–17. The present site is the third used by the parish for its church. The first was further south, near Ox ...
, now a garden of rest. Stubbs's son George Townly Stubbs was an engraver and printmaker.


A lion attacking a horse

Stubbs began an informal series of works on the subject of a lion attacking a horse around 1762 or 1763, and he continued to explore and reinterpret the theme in at least 17 images over a period of about 30 years. These paintings are among his most celebrated and influential works.Egerton, Judy. 1984. ''George Stubbs 1724-1806.'' Tate Gallery Publications. Milbank, London. 248 pp. One art historian wrote "The appearance of the monumental picture now in the Mellon Collection 'A Lion Attacking a Horse'', ca. 1762-63must be treated as one of the outstanding events in English eighteenth-century art for within the context of painting at that date its singularity as well as its inherent originality is most striking. Not since the publication of Hogarth's Harlot's Progress thirty years before had there occurred such an innovation."Taylor, Basil. 1965. ''George Stubbs: "The Lion and the Horse" Theme''. The Burlington Magazine, 107 (743): 81-87 The iconic paintings are in fact among the earliest manifestations of
Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
in painting, predating the work of more familiar masters of the movement such as
William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...
,
Eugène Delacroix Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix ( , ; 26 April 1798 – 13 August 1863) was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school.Noon, Patrick, et al., ''Crossing the Channel: Britis ...
,
Francisco Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 174616 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, and e ...
, William Turner, and
Théodore Géricault Jean-Louis André Théodore Géricault (; 26 September 1791 – 26 January 1824) was a French Painting, painter and Lithography, lithographer, whose best-known painting is ''The Raft of the Medusa''. Although he died young, he was one of the pi ...
, who was known to be an admirer of both horses, and the work of George Stubbs.Janson, H. W. 1977. ''History of Art: A Survey of the Major Visual Arts from the Dawn of History to the Present Day'' (2nd, edition). Harry N. Abrams, Inc., publishers. New York, 767 pp. Claudon, Francis. 1980. ''The Concise Encyclopedia of Romanticism''. Chartwell Books, Inc. Secaucus, New Jersey. 304 pp. Jean Clay, professor of art history at the University of Paris, perceptively observed that not only does the energy and terror of the animals foreshadow the spirit of romanticism but, as Stubbs's series progressed, the horror seemed to diffuse and expand throughout the whole of the landscape: "an image that would fertilize the Romantic imagination and come to full flower a half-century later."Clay, Jean. 1980. ''Roamanticism''. Chartwell Books, Inc. Secaucus, New Jersey. 320 pp. The series are mostly oil paintings on canvas, but also include examples of enamel on copper, original engravings, and even a relief model in
Wedgwood Wedgwood is an English fine china, porcelain and luxury accessories manufacturer that was founded on 1 May 1759 by the potter and entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood and was first incorporated in 1895 as Josiah Wedgwood and Sons Ltd. It was rapid ...
clay. The white horse was painted from one of the Kings Horses in the Mews, secured for the artist by an architect friend, Mr. Payne. Stubbs was able to study a lion in life that was in the menagerie of Lord Shellburne at Hounslow Heath. The earliest work is a life-size painting of ''A Lion Attacking a Horse'' (ca. 1762-63), which was commissioned by the 2nd Marquess of Rockingham and now in the
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
. Art historian Basil Taylor postulated the theme was treated in three distinct episodes: Episode A, a lion prowling at some distance from a terrified horse; Episode B, a lion close to a terrified horse; Episode C a lion on the horse's back biting its flank. Interestingly, Stubbs first painted "Episode C", and it was not until later that he was inspired to go back and paint the moments leading up to the climatic event. An anecdote regarding the origin of the subject matter emerged soon after the artist death, originally published in '' The Sporting Magazine'' in 1808, and reiterate often for well over a century and a half. Art historian
H. W. Janson Horst Woldemar Janson (October 4, 1913 – September 30, 1982), was a Russian Empire-born German-American professor of art history best known for his ''History of Art'', which was first published in 1962 and has since sold more than four million c ...
repeated it "On a visit to North Africa, he had seen a horse killed by a lion; this experience haunted his imagination, and from it he developed a new type of animal picture full of Romantic feeling for the grandeur and violence of nature." However, research published in 1965 produced a rather persuasive argument that Stubbs in fact never traveled to Africa, and the actual inspiration for the painting was an antique sculpture he had seen in a well documented 1754 stay in Rome. The sculpture, ''Lion Seizing a Horse'', in the Palazzo dei Conservatori, Rome, is a restored Roman copy of a
Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
original. It has been a celebrated work since the Renaissance, admired by Michelangelo, included in guidebooks of Stubbs's day, and copied any number of times by various artist in marble, bronze, and prints, including an 18th century marble copy in the collection of Stubbs's patron Henry Blundell, who also acquired one of the paintings by Stubbs. File:George Stubbs - A Lion Attacking a Horse - Google Art Project.jpg, ''A Lion Attacking a Horse'' (ca. 1762-63), oil on canvas, 243.8 x 332.7 cm.,
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
File:George Stubbs - Horse Devoured by a Lion - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Horse Devoured by a Lion'' (1763), oil on canvas, 69.2 x 103.5 cm.,
Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...
File:George Stubbs - Horse Frightened by a Lion - Google Art Project (2416309).jpg, ''Horse Frightened by a Lion'' (ca. 1763 -1768), oil on canvas, 70.5 x 104.1 cm.,
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
File:George Stubbs 005.jpg, ''A Lion Attacking a Horse'' (1765) oil on canvas, 69 x 100.1 cm.,
National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum. The NGV houses an encyclopedic art collection across two ...
File:George Stubbs - A Lion Attacking a Horse - 1955.27.1 - Yale University Art Gallery.jpg, ''A Lion Attacking a Horse'' (1770), oil on canvas, 38 in. x 49 1/2in.,
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...


Legacy

Stubbs remained a secondary figure in British art until the mid-twentieth century. The art historian Basil Taylor and art collector Paul Mellon both championed Stubbs's work. Stubbs's ''Pumpkin with a Stable-lad'' was the first painting that Mellon bought in 1936. Basil Taylor was commissioned in 1955 by Pelican Press to write the book ''Animal Painting in England – From Barlow to Landseer'', which included a large segment on Stubbs. In 1959 Mellon and Taylor first met and bonded over their appreciation of Stubbs. This led Mellon to create the Paul Mellon Foundation for British Art (the predecessor of the
Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art The Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art is a scholarly centre in London devoted to supporting original research into the history of British Art. It was founded in 1970 and endowed by a gift from Paul Mellon. Since 1996, it has been s ...
) with Taylor as the director. Mellon eventually amassed the largest collection of Stubbs paintings in the world which would become a part of his larger collection of British art that would become the
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
in
Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...
, USA. In 1971, Taylor published the seminal catalogue, ''Stubbs''. The record price for a Stubbs painting was set by the sale at auction of ''Gimcrack on Newmarket Heath, with a Trainer, a Stable-Lad, and a Jockey'' (1765) at Christie's in London in July 2011 for £22.4 million. It was sold by The Woolavington Collection of sporting art at
Cottesbrooke Hall Cottesbrooke Hall and the Cottesbrooke estate in Northamptonshire, England is a Grade I listed country house and estate. Location The Hall and estate are approx. north of the town of Northampton along the A5199 road just 1 mile (1.6 km) no ...
, Northamptonshire; the buyer was unidentified. The Royal Collection of the British royal family holds 16 paintings by Stubbs. Two paintings by Stubbs were bought by the
National Maritime Museum The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the Unite ...
in
Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...
, London after a public appeal to raise the £1.5 million required. The two paintings, ''
The Kongouro from New Holland ''The Kongouro from New Holland'' is an oil painting by George Stubbs. Depicting a kangaroo, it is the first painting of an Australian animal in Western Art, along with a painting of a dingo—'' Portrait of a Large Dog''—also by George Stubb ...
'' and ''
Portrait of a Large Dog ''Portrait of a Large Dog'' is an oil painting depicting a dingo ('' Canis lupus dingo'') by George Stubbs (August 25, 1724 - July 10, 1806). It is part of the collection of the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, London. The painting and '' ...
'' were both painted in 1772. Depicting a
kangaroo Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern ...
and a dingo respectively, they are the first depictions of Australian animals in Western art. His work was shown in a retrospective exhibition at the
Whitechapel Gallery The Whitechapel Gallery is a public art gallery in Whitechapel on the north side of Whitechapel High Street, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The original building, designed by Charles Harrison Townsend, opened in 1901 as one of the fir ...
in London, 27 February – 7 April 1957.Whitechapel Gallery
/ref> The
Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...
, in conjunction with the
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
, organized the largest exhibition ever devoted to Stubbs (up to that time) in 1984, which travelled to New Haven in 1985.


Gallery

File:George Stubbs, 1759, 'Racehorses Exercising'.jpg, ''Racehorses Exercising at Goodwood'' (1759–60), oil on canvas, 127.5 x 204 cm.. Goodwood House File:George Stubbs (1724-1806) - Joseph Smyth Esquire, Lieutenant of Whittlebury Forest, Northamptonshire, on a Dapple Grey Horse - PD.95-1992 - Fitzwilliam Museum.jpg, ''Joseph Smyth Esq, Lieutenant of Whittlebury Forest, Northamptonshire, on a Dapple Grey Horse'' (1762–64), oil on canvas, 64.2 x 76.8 cm.,
Fitzwilliam Museum The Fitzwilliam Museum is the art and antiquities museum of the University of Cambridge. It is located on Trumpington Street opposite Fitzwilliam Street in central Cambridge. It was founded in 1816 under the will of Richard FitzWilliam, 7th Vis ...
File:George Stubbs, English - Hound Coursing a Stag - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Hound Coursing a Stag'' (ca. 1762), oil on canvas, 100.1 x 125.8 cm., Philadelphia Museum of Art File:George Stubbs 009.jpg, ''Cheetah and Stag with Two Indians'' (ca. 1765), oil on canvas, 182.7 x 275.3 cm.,
Manchester Art Gallery Manchester Art Gallery, formerly Manchester City Art Gallery, is a publicly owned art museum on Mosley Street in Manchester city centre. The main gallery premises were built for a learned society in 1823 and today its collection occupies three ...
File:Captain Samuel Sharpe Pocklington with His Wife, Pleasance, and possibly His Sister, Frances SC-000760.jpg, ''Captain Samuel Sharpe Pocklington with His Wife, Pleasance, and possibly His Sister, Frances'' (1769), oil on canvas, 100.2 x 126.6 cm., National Gallery of Art File:George Stubbs 001.jpg, ''Reapers'' (1785), oil on canvas, 90 x 137 cm.,
Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...
File:George Stubbs - Haymaking - WGA21948.jpg, ''Haymakers'' (1785), oil on panel, 89.5 x 132.5 cm.,
Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...
File:George Stubbs - Bulls Fighting - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Bulls Fighting'' (1786), oil on panel, 61.6 x 82.6 cm.,
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
File:George Stubbs - The Farmer's Wife and the Raven - Google Art Project.jpg, ''The Farmer's Wife and the Raven'' (1786), oil on millboard, 67.3 x 97.8 cm.,
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
File:George Stubbs 022.jpg, ''Soldiers of the 10th Light Dragoons'' (1793), oil on canvas, 102 x 128 cm., Royal Art Collection


Horses

File:Stubbs - mares and foals in a landscape. 1763-68. Tate Britain..jpg, ''Mares and Foals in a Landscape'' (1763–68), oil on canvas, 102 x 162 cm.,
Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...
File:The Third Duke of Dorset's Hunter with a Groom and a Dog MET DP164858.jpg, ''The Third Duke of Dorset's Hunter with a Groom and a Dog'' (1768), oil on canvas, 101.6 x 126.4 cm.,
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 ...
File:George Stubbs (1724-1806) - Horse in the Shade of a Wood - N04696 - National Gallery.jpg, ''Horse in the Shade of a Wood'' (1780). 76.2 x 59.7 cm.,
Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...
/
National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director ...
File:A Saddled Bay Hunter, by George Stubbs.jpg, ''A Saddled Bay Hunter'' (1786), oil on panel, 48.2 x 57.7 cm.,
Denver Art Museum The Denver Art Museum (DAM) is an art museum located in the Civic Center of Denver, Colorado. With encyclopedic collections of more than 70,000 diverse works from across the centuries and world, the DAM is one of the largest art museums between ...
File:Hambletonian.jpg, ''Hambletonian, Rubbing Down'' (1800), oil on canvas, 209 x 367.3 cm.,
National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...
, Mount Stewart


Dogs

File:George Stubbs - The Pointer - WGA21950.jpg, ''The Pointer'' (ca. 1766), oil on canvas, 61 x 70 cm., Neue Pinakothek File:George Stubbs - Water Spaniel - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Water Spaniel'' (1769), oil on canvas, 90.2 x 116.8 cm.,
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
File:George Stubbs - Brown and White Norfolk or Water Spaniel - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Brown and White Norfolk or Water Spaniel'' (1778), oil on panel, 80.6 x 97.2 cm.,
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
File:George Stubbs, White Poodle in a Punt, c. 1780, NGA 110281.jpg, ''White Poodle in a Punt'' (ca. 1780), oil on canvas, 127 x 101.5 cm., National Gallery of Art File:George Stubbs (1724-1806) - A Couple of Foxhounds - T01705 - Tate.jpg, ''A Couple of Foxhounds'' (1792), oil on canvas, 127 x 101.6 cm.,
Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...
File:Black and White Spaniel Following a Scent by George Stubbs.jpg, ''Black and White Spaniel Following a Scent'' (1793), oil on canvas, 25 x 30 in.,
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, or VMFA, is an art museum in Richmond, Virginia, United States, which opened in 1936. The museum is owned and operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia. Private donations, endowments, and funds are used for the s ...


Exotic wildlife

File:George Stubbs - Zebra - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Zebra'' (1763), oil on canvas, 102.9 x 127.6 cm.,
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
File:Moose (1770), oil on canvas, 61 x 70.5 cm., Hunterian Art Gallery, University of Glasgow.jpg, The Moose (1770), oil on canvas, 61 x 70.5 cm., Hunterian Art Gallery File:Two Leopards by George Stubbs, c. 1776.jpg, ''Two Leopards'' (c. 1776), oil on panel, 90.5 x 137.4 cm., private collection File:George Stubbs - Greenland Falcon - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Greenland Falcon'' (1780), oil on panel, 81.3 x 99.1 cm.,
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
File:Rhinoceros (ca. 1780-91), oil on canvas, 69.9 x 92.7 cm., private collection.jpg, ''Rhinoceros'' (ca. 1780-91), oil on canvas, 69.9 x 92.7 cm., private collection File:George Stubbs - A Monkey - Google Art Project.jpg, ''The Monkey'' (1799), oil on canvas, 70 x 55.9 cm.,
Walker Art Gallery The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group. History of the Gallery The Walker Art Gallery's collection ...


List of selected artworks

;In the
Yale Center for British Art Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the worl ...
: In the
Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...
;In the Royal Collection ;In the
National Museums Liverpool National Museums Liverpool, formerly National Museums and Galleries on Merseyside, comprises several museums and art galleries in and around Liverpool, England. All the museums and galleries in the group have free admission. The museum is a non ...
;In the National Gallery, London *''
Whistlejacket ''Whistlejacket'' is an oil on canvas painting from about 1762 by the British artist George Stubbs showing the Marquess of Rockingham's racehorse approximately at life-size, rearing up against a plain background. The canvas is large, lacks any ...
'' (1762) *''A Gentleman driving a Lady in a Phaeton'' (1787) *''The Milbanke and Melbourne Families'' (c.1769) ;In the
National Maritime Museum, Greenwich The National Maritime Museum (NMM) is a maritime museum in Greenwich, London. It is part of Royal Museums Greenwich, a network of museums in the Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. Like other publicly funded national museums in the United ...
*''
The Kongouro from New Holland ''The Kongouro from New Holland'' is an oil painting by George Stubbs. Depicting a kangaroo, it is the first painting of an Australian animal in Western Art, along with a painting of a dingo—'' Portrait of a Large Dog''—also by George Stubb ...
'' (1772) *''
Portrait of a Large Dog ''Portrait of a Large Dog'' is an oil painting depicting a dingo ('' Canis lupus dingo'') by George Stubbs (August 25, 1724 - July 10, 1806). It is part of the collection of the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, London. The painting and '' ...
'' (1772) ;
Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery The Hunterian is a complex of museums located in and operated by the University of Glasgow in Glasgow, Scotland. It is the oldest museum in Scotland. It covers the Hunterian Museum, the Hunterian Art Gallery, the Mackintosh House, the Zoology M ...
, University of Glasgow *''The Moose'' (1770) *''The Nilgai'' (1769) *''A Blackbuck'' (1770–1780) ;
Hunterian Museum (London) The Hunterian Museum is a museum of anatomical specimens in London, located in the building of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. History In 1799 the government purchased the collection of the Scottish surgeon John Hunter which they pr ...
*''The Yak of Tartary '' (1791) *''Rhinoceros'' (1790–1792) *''Drill and Albino Baboon'' (before 1789) ; British Sporting Art Trust *''A Pointer (a pair)'' *''A Spaniel (a pair)'' *''Lord Clanbrassil with Hunter Mowbrary'' (1769) *''Fighting Stallions'' (1791) ;
National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...
* '' British racehorse "Hambletonian" ; National Gallery of Art, Washington *
Captain Samuel Sharpe Pocklington with His Wife, Pleasance, and possibly His Sister, Frances
' (1769)

(c. 1780) ;
Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...
*''Goose with Outspread Wings'' *''Lions and a Lioness with a Rocky Background'' (1776) * The Portland Collection
The 3rd Duke of Portland on horseback at Welbeck Abbey
* William Henry Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland and his younger brother Lord Edward


See also

*
Animal art An animal painter is an artist who specialises in (or is known for their skill in) the portrayal of animals. The ''OED'' dates the first express use of the term "animal painter" to the mid-18th century: by English physician, naturalist and wri ...
* English school of painting


References


Further reading

*Boyle, Frederick & Mayer, Joseph.
Memoirs of Thomas Dodd, William Upcott, and George Stubbs, R.A.
' (Liverpool: D. Marples, 1879). *Egerton, Judy. ''George Stubbs, 1724–1806'' ( Tate Gallery Publications, 1984). *Egerton, Judy. ''George Stubbs, Painter. Catalogue Raisonné'' (New Haven and London: Published for the
Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art The Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art is a scholarly centre in London devoted to supporting original research into the history of British Art. It was founded in 1970 and endowed by a gift from Paul Mellon. Since 1996, it has been s ...
by
Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day, and became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and operationally autonomous. , Yale Universi ...
, 2007) * Rump, Gerhard C. ''Pferde und Jagdbilder in der englischen Kunst. Studien zu George Stubbs und dem Genre der "Sporting Art" von 1650–1830'' (Olms: Hildesheim, New York, 1983) *Gilbey, Walter.
Animal Painters of England from the Year 1650, Volume 2
' (Vinton, 1900) p. 192 ff. *Morrison, Venetia. ''Art of George Stubbs'' (Headline Book Pub., 1989). *Myrone, Martin. ''George Stubbs (British Artists series)'' (Tate Publishing, 2002). *Taylor, Basil. ''Stubbs'' (London: Phaidon Prees, 1971)


External links

*

(Artcyclopedia)
George Stubbs – a celebration
(
Walker Art Gallery The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group. History of the Gallery The Walker Art Gallery's collection ...
)
George Stubbs
(Encyclopedia of Irish and World Art)

(Mezzo Mundo Fine Art)
Paintings by George Stubbs
(
Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...
)
Profile on Royal Academy of Arts Collections

Selected images from ''Anatomy of the Horse''
From The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Digital Library
Judy Egerton archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stubbs, George 1724 births 1806 deaths 18th-century enamellers 19th-century enamellers 18th-century English male artists 19th-century English male artists 18th-century English painters 19th-century English painters Artists from Liverpool Associates of the Royal Academy English enamellers English male painters Equine artists