John Copley (25 June 1875 – 17 July 1950) was a British artist. He was a founder member of the Senefelder Club and served as its honorary secretary from 1910 to 1916. While there he met his future wife, Ethel Léontine Gabain, with whom he had two sons. Copley won a silver medal for Painting and Engraving at the 1948 London Summer Olympics. At 73, he was the oldest recipient of any Olympic medal. 1948 was the last Games in which art competitions were held.

Personal life

Copley was born in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

in 1875. He studied art at the

Manchester School of Art Manchester School of Art in Manchester, England, was established in 1838 as the Manchester School of Design. It is the second oldest art school in the United Kingdom after the Royal College of Art which was founded the year before. It is now par ...

and the Royal Academy. He spent ten years in Italy before moving to London. In 1909 Copley and

Joseph Pennell Joseph Pennell (July 4, 1857 – April 23, 1926) was an American draftsman, etcher, lithographer and illustrator for books and magazines. A prolific artist, he spent most of his working life in Europe, and is known for his interest in landmarks, l ...

started the Senefelder Club to publicise and promote

lithography Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

as an artistic medium. Copley was honorary secretary of the club until 1916. During this time he met the French-English artist Ethel Léontine Gabain and the couple married in June 1913. John and Ethel lived in Kent for a time at The Yews in

Longfield Longfield is a village in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located 6 miles south east of Dartford and the same distance south-west of Gravesend. History The place in Kent is recorded as ''Langanfelda'' in the Saxon Charters of ...

. They had two children,

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

and Christopher. Peter went on to have a successful and lengthy career as an actor. The family moved to 10 Hampstead Square, NW3, where they created a studio in which the couple could work together. They moved to Alassio, Italy, where they would stay for two and a half years before moving back to London. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he worked as an official war artist. Ethel died on 30 January 1950 at the age of 66. Less than six months later, on 17 July 1950, John also died.

Career

Copley was influenced by

Ford Madox Brown Ford Madox Brown (16 April 1821 – 6 October 1893) was a British painter of moral and historical subjects, notable for his distinctively graphic and often William Hogarth, Hogarthian version of the Pre-Raphaelite style. Arguably, his mos ...

. He became interested in

in 1906 and initially worked in colour before exclusively working in black and white. One of his works claimed a prize at Chicago Art Institute's First International Exhibition of Lithographs. In 1947 Copley was honoured as the president of the Royal Society of British Artists.

Olympic success

Copley submitted an engraving entitled "''Polo Players''" to the art competitions of the 1948 Summer Olympic Games in London. He won the silver medal in the Mixed Painting, Engravings And Etchings category, finishing second behind French artist

Albert Decaris Albert Decaris (6 May 1901 – 1 January 1988) was a French artist, engraver, painter and Olympic Gold medal, Olympic Gold Medallist. Early life Decaris was born in Sotteville-lès-Rouen. At age 19, Decaris won the ''Concours de Rome'', which ...

. At the time of the competition Copley was 73 years of age, making him the oldest ever Olympic medal winner. The arts competitions are no longer recognised by the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

; 72-year-old Swedish shooter

Oscar Swahn Oscar Gomer Swahn (20 October 1847 – 1 May 1927) was a Swedish shooter who competed at three Olympic games and won six medals, including three gold. Swahn holds records as the oldest Olympian at the time of competition, the oldest person t ...

is recorded as the oldest sporting medal winner. The

Fine Art Society The Fine Art Society is a gallery based in both London and in Edinburgh's New Town (originally Bourne Fine Art, established 1978). The New Bond Street, London gallery closed its doors in August 2018 after being occupied by The Fine Art Society si ...

celebrated Copley's Olympic success at the London Original Print Fair in April 2012. A collection of his works was on display throughout the event.

References

External links

Copley Gabain
at Lane Fine Art
Self-portrait by John Copley
in the collection of the

National Portrait Gallery, London The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London housing a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. It was arguably the first national public gallery dedicated to portraits in the world when it ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Copley, John 1875 births 1950 deaths Artists from Manchester Alumni of Manchester Metropolitan University Medalists at the 1948 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medallists for Great Britain Members of the Royal Society of British Artists Olympic competitors in art competitions British war artists 20th-century war artists People from Longfield