Samuel King (January 24, 1749 − December 20, 1819) was an American painter of miniature portraits and instructor.

Early life

Samuel King was born about January 24, 1749 in

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and northeast of New Yor ...

. His father, Benjamin King, made navigational and mathematical instruments. King received training to become a house painter in Boston, Massachusetts, which became one of his many occupations.Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.); Carrie Rebora Barratt; Lori Zabar (January 1, 2010)
''American Portrait Miniatures in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.''
Metropolitan Museum of Art. p. 42. .Joan M. Marter (2011)
''The Grove Encyclopedia of American Art.''
Oxford University Press. p. 43. .

Career

King had pursued several vocations before beginning his artistic career. He painted houses, made frames, decorated carriages and made mathematical and navigational instruments. After his marriage in 1770, King became increasingly interested in art, but also continued to make instruments. He made a miniature portrait painting Reverend Ezra Stiles in 1770, which is now part 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 ...

's collection. Stiles, who performed King's marriage ceremony, went on to become the president of

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

. The following year he painted Stiles' portrait on canvas. King taught artists Ann Hall, Charles Bird King,

Edward Greene Malbone Edward Greene Malbone (1777 – May 7, 1807) was an American painter, and the most sought-after miniaturist of his day. He was an influence on other artists including Charles Fraser, William Dunlap and John Wesley Jarvis. Edward Greene Malbone ...

, and

Washington Allston Washington Allston (November 5, 1779 – July 9, 1843) was an American painter and poet, born in Waccamaw Parish, South Carolina. Allston pioneered America's Romantic movement of landscape painting. He was well known during his lifetime for ...

. Malbone had been encouraged by King to become an artist. Hall visited Newport to receive lessons from King.Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.); Carrie Rebora Barratt; Lori Zabar (January 1, 2010)
''American Portrait Miniatures in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.''
Metropolitan Museum of Art. p. 133. . He created a transparency for the Rhode Island State House in 1783, which was "probably" illuminated from torches placed behind the large transparency.

Personal life

King was married to Amy Vernon in 1770 by Reverend Ezra Stiles. She was the daughter of a successful merchant, Samuel Vernon. He died December 20, 1819 in Newport.

Gallery

File:Samuel King, Reverend Ezra Stiles, 1770, watercolor on ivory.jpg, ''Reverend Ezra Stiles'', 1770, watercolor on ivory, Metropolitan Museum of Art File:Samuel King - Ezra Stiles (1727 -1795), B.A. 1746, M.A. 1749 - 1955.3.1 - Yale University Art Gallery.jpg, ''Reverend Ezra Stiles,'' 1771, oil on canvas, Yale University Art Gallery

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:King, Samuel 1748 births 1819 deaths American portrait painters Portrait miniaturists Artists from Newport, Rhode Island People of colonial Rhode Island 18th-century American painters 18th-century American male artists 19th-century American painters Painters from Rhode Island American male painters 19th-century American male artists