John Smart (1 May 1741 – 1 May 1811), was an
English painter of
portrait miniatures. He was a contemporary of
Richard Cosway,
George Engleheart
George Engleheart (1750–1829) was one of the greatest England, English painters of portrait miniatures, and a contemporary of Richard Cosway, John Smart, William Wood, and Richard Crosse (painter), Richard Crosse.
Family and home
Engleheart ...
, William Wood and
Richard Crosse.
Biography
Smart was born in
Norfolk, but not much is known of his early life. It is recorded that in 1755 he was runner up to
Richard Cosway in a drawing competition for under-14s held by the
Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce. In the same year he began attending the new drawing school of
William Shipley in London, along with Cosway and
Richard Crosse.
He exhibited at the
Society of Artists, in London, from 1762 onwards; and became its president in 1778. He went to
India in 1788 and obtained a number of commissions in that country. He settled down in
London in 1797, latterly in Fitzroy Street, and died there in 1811.
He was a man of simple habits, and a member of the
Society of Sandemanians.
Work
Smart mainly painted watercolour
miniatures on
ivory, and often clearly signed and dated his work. A number of his preparatory drawings and sketches survive.
His work is entirely different from that of Cosway, quiet and grey in its colouring, with the flesh tints elaborated with much subtlety and modelled in exquisite fashion. He possessed a great knowledge of
anatomy, and his portraits are drawn with greater anatomical accuracy and possess more distinction than those of any miniature painter of his time.
The most important collection of Smart's work was given by John W. and Martha Jane Phillips Starr to th
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art The Starr collection includes a signed and dated miniature for each year of Smart's career, from 1760 to 1811, enabling scholars to view the full progression of Smart's style and technique as well as the changing fashions of the period.
Many of his pencil drawings still exist in the possession of the descendants of a great friend of his only sister. Several of his miniatures are in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and belong to a cadet branch of the family.
Smart taught portrait painting to
Isabella Beetham
Isabella Beetham was an 18th-century British silhouette artist. She began her career by cutting the silhouette images. After studying painting with successful miniature portraitist John Smart, Beetham painted silhouettes to be framed or miniatur ...
,
who was one of Britain's finest silhouette artists in the 18th century.
Personal life
Smart married Edith Vere, and is believed to have had only one son, who died in
Madras
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
in 1809.
Gallery
Image:John Smart - Portrait of the Hon Miss Eliza Booth - Dated 1766 - Victoria & Albert Museum.jpg, Portrait of Hon. Miss Eliza Booth, dated 1766. Victoria & Albert Museum
Image:John Smart - Portrait of Unknown Man - Dated 1767 - Victoria & Albert Museum.jpg, Portrait of Unknown Man, dated 1767. Victoria & Albert Museum
Image:John Smart - Portrait of Unknown Woman - Dated 1779 - Victoria & Albert Museum.jpg, Portrait of Unknown Woman, dated 1779. Victoria & Albert Museum
Image:John Smart - Portrait of Unknown Woman - Dated 1780 - Victoria & Albert Museum.jpg, Portrait of Unknown Woman, dated 1780. Victoria & Albert Museum
Image:Watercolor on ivory portrait miniature of a lady by John Smart, 1782, 5.1 x 4.1 cm, Cincinnati Art Museum.jpg, Watercolor on ivory portrait miniature
A portrait miniature is a miniature portrait painting, usually executed in gouache, watercolor, or enamel. Portrait miniatures developed out of the techniques of the miniatures in illuminated manuscripts, and were popular among 16th-century eli ...
of a lady, 1782, 5.1 x 4.1 cm, Cincinnati Art Museum
Image:John Smart - Portrait of a Member of the Tayler Family - Dated 1787 - Victoria & Albert Museum.jpg, Portrait of a Member of the Tayler Family, dated 1787. Frame with bracelet fitting. Victoria & Albert Museum
Image:Sir-robert-brooke-st-helena.jpg, Sir Robert Brooke, probably
References
Further reading
* GC Williamson, ''The History of Portrait Miniatures'', vol. ii. (London, 1904).
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smart, John
1740 births
1811 deaths
18th-century English painters
English male painters
19th-century English painters
English portrait painters
Portrait miniaturists
Glasites
19th-century English male artists
18th-century English male artists