Samuel Shelley (1750/56–1808) was an English miniaturist and watercolour painter.
Largely self-educated, Samuel Shelley was a leading miniaturist, i.e., painter of
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 ...
s, of his time, ranking with
Cosway,
Smart
Smart or SMART may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Smart'' (Hey! Say! JUMP album), 2014
* Smart (Hotels.com), former mascot of Hotels.com
* ''Smart'' (Sleeper album), 1995 debut album by Sleeper
* ''SMart'', a children's television ser ...
, and
Crosse. In addition to his portraits, he also painted in water-colours fancy figures and compositions from Shakespeare, Tasso, and other poets. His water-colours and miniatures were engraved by
Bartolozzi,
William Nutter,
Caroline Watson
Caroline Watson (1761?–1814) was an English stipple engraver.
Life
The daughter of the Irish engraver James Watson (engraver), James Watson, she was born in London in 1760 or 1761, and studied under her father, who worked in mezzotint. She was ...
, and others.
Life
Born in
Whitechapel
Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed ...
, London, Shelley was for the most part self-taught as an artist. His first exhibition was at the
Society of Artists in 1773, on 21 March the following year he entered the Royal Academy Schools (his age recorded as 17), where he became influenced by the work of Sir
Joshua Reynolds
Sir Joshua Reynolds (16 July 1723 – 23 February 1792) was an English painter, specialising in portraits. John Russell said he was one of the major European painters of the 18th century. He promoted the "Grand Style" in painting which depend ...
. During his career Shelley painted in oil, illustrated books, and engraved several of his own works, but he's most particularly remembered for his watercolour miniature portraits. During his lifetime he exhibited at the
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...
, the Society of Artists and the
British Institute. In 1804 Shelley joined with
W. F. Wells,
Robert Hills,
W. H. Pyne, and six other artists to found the
Watercolour Society (afterwards known as the "Old" society), of which he was treasurer until 1807.
Shelley also taught painting, Edward Nash (miniaturist) and
Alexander Robertson being two of his pupils.
References
18th-century English painters
English male painters
19th-century English painters
1750 births
1808 deaths
English watercolourists
Portrait miniaturists
19th-century English male artists
18th-century English male artists
{{England-painter-stub