A limner is an illuminator of manuscripts, or more generally, a painter of ornamental decoration. One of the earliest mentions of a limner's work is found in the book ''Methods and Materials of Painting'' by

Charles Lock Eastlake Sir Charles Lock Eastlake (17 November 1793 – 24 December 1865) was a British painter, gallery director, collector and writer of the 19th century. After a period as keeper, he was the first director of the National Gallery. Life Eastlak ...

(1793–1865).

United Kingdom

In London in the mid-19th century the limner

David Laurent de Lara David Laurent de Lara (c.1806, Amsterdam - 1876) was a London-based, Dutch-born limner of Spanish descent. He has been described as a pioneer who helped illumination to become recognised as an artform in its own right at a time when very few had ...

established himself as a modern illuminator of manuscripts and documents. His work broke new ground and helped establish the idea of illumination as a contemporary artform in its own right, rather than as a historical artform. The office of Her Majesty's

Painter and Limner The Painter and Limner is a member of the Royal Household in Scotland. Appointments of Court Painters are recorded from 1581 onwards, and the post of Painter and Limner was created in 1702 for George Ogilvie. The duties included "drawing pictures ...

is a position within the Royal Household unique to Scotland. It is currently held by Dame Elizabeth Blackadder. The position of portrait painter to the royal household is honorary and for life.

United States

In early 19th-century America, a limner artist was one who had little if any formal training and would travel from place to place to solicit commissions. Among colonial America's rising mercantile class, a limner was an unattributed

portrait A portrait is a portrait painting, painting, portrait photography, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, Personality type ...

commissioned as a status symbol. The local landowners and merchants who commissioned these portraits posed in their finest clothes, in well-appointed interiors, or in landscapes that identified their position, property, good taste, and sophistication. A late named artist who began in this genre is the

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

landscape artist

Charles Codman Charles Codman (1800 – September 11, 1842) was an American painter. A native of Portland, Maine, he was known for his landscape and marine paintings. Career Codman was apprenticed to the ornamental painter John Ritto Penniman, where he be ...

, who in Eastern Argus (April 1, 1831) is described as an "ornamental and sign painter" or "limner" who practiced "Military, Standard, Fancy, Ornamental, Masonic and Sign Painting".

Canada

The Victoria Limners Society was a group of artists working in Victoria, British Columbia from 1971 through 2008. They worked within a variety of artistic styles and mediums, such as painting, sculpting, pottery, and other forms of visual art. The artists include Maxwell Bates, Pat Martin Bates, Richard Ciccimarra, Robert De Castro, Colin Graham, Helga Grove, Jan Grove,

Elza Mayhew Elza Edith Mayhew (January 19, 1916 – January 11, 2004) was a Canadian sculptor who worked mainly in bronze. Life The daughter of Alice Bordman and George Lovitt, She was born Elza Edith Lovitt in Victoria, British Columbia. Mayhew rece ...

Myfanwy Pavelic Myfanwy Pavelic, (April 27, 1916 – May 7, 2007) née Spencer, was a Canadian portrait artist. Early life and career Born in Victoria, British Columbia to an upper-class family, her first interests in fine art came after meeting with Emily ...

, Carole Sabiston,

Herbert Siebner Herbert Johannes Josef Siebner (April 16, 1925 – August 3, 2003) was born in Stettin, Prussia, and died in Victoria, Canada. Siebner was an Expressionist painter, printmaker, and sculptor. Siebner studied graphic arts under Max E. A. Richter ...

Robin Skelton Robin Skelton (12 October 1925 – 22 August 1997) was a British-born academic, writer, poet, and anthologist. Biography Born in Easington, East Riding of Yorkshire, Easington, Yorkshire, Skelton was educated at the University of Leeds and Cambr ...

, and Karl Spreitz."Limners (Group of artists)"
MemoryBC

References

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External links

at the

National Gallery of Art The National Gallery of Art, and its attached Sculpture Garden, is a national art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of char ...

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070313091643/http://search.famsf.org:8080/search.shtml?keywords=Freake Works of the Freake Limnerat the

Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF), comprising the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park and the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park, is the largest public arts institution in the city of San Francisco. The permanent collection of the ...

* ttp://pam.org/asp/templates/collection_object_page.asp?collectionID=14&imageID=59 Portrait by Erastus Salisbury Fieldat the

Portland Art Museum The Portland Art Museum in Portland, Oregon, United States, was founded in 1892, making it one of the oldest art museums on the West Coast and seventh oldest in the US. Upon completion of the most recent renovations, the Portland Art Museum becam ...

Obsolete occupations Arts occupations