William Riviere (1806–1876) sometimes Rivière, was an English painter and art educator.

Life

Born in the parish of St Marylebone, London, on 22 October 1806, was son of Daniel Valentine Riviere, a drawing-master; and brother of Henry Parsons Rivière (1811–1888), another painter, and

Robert Riviere Robert Riviere (30 June 1808 in London – 12 April 1882 in London) was a British bookbinder of Huguenot descent. Life Riviere was descended from a French family, who left their country on the revocation of the edict of Nantes. His father, Daniel ...

. After receiving instruction from his father, he became a student at the Royal Academy. He was noted as a draughtsman, and as a student of Michelangelo and the Roman and Florentine artists. He exhibited first in 1826, when he sent to the Royal Academy a portrait and a scene from Shakespeare's '' King John''. Later Riviere concentrated on teaching, and in 1849 he was appointed drawing-master at

Cheltenham College ("Work Conquers All") , established = , closed = , type = Public school Independent School Day and Boarding School , religion = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head , head = Nicola Hugget ...

, where he created a drawing-school. After ten years, he went to

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, where he promoted his view that the study of art should form an essential part of higher education. Shortly after arriving In Oxford, Riviere was commissioned by the

Oxford Union The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to simply as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford England, whose membership is drawn primarily from the University of Oxford. Founded in 1823, it is one of Britain's oldest ...

to complete the set of ten murals within its new debating chamber. Painting of the murals by such artists associated with the

Pre-Raphaelite The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (later known as the Pre-Raphaelites) was a group of English painters, poets, and art critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Michael Rossetti, James ...

movement as

Dante Gabriel Rossetti Gabriel Charles Dante Rossetti (12 May 1828 – 9 April 1882), generally known as Dante Gabriel Rossetti (), was an English poet, illustrator, painter, translator and member of the Rossetti family. He founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhoo ...

, Arthur Hughes,

Burne-Jones The Burne-Jones Baronetcy, of Rottingdean in the County of Sussex, and of The Grange in the Parish of Fulham in the County of London, was a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 4 May 1894 for the artist and designer E ...

, and

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

, had begun in August 1857. But by March 1858 the project had been left unfinished, so the Oxford Union commissioned Riviere to complete the last remaining three panels. This he did, his pictures depicting the education of Arthur by Merlin, King Arthur’s first victory with the sword, and Arthur’s wedding. Riviere died suddenly, at 36 Beaumont Street, Oxford, on 21 August 1876. A miniature of him when a young man, by Charles William Pegler, went to his son

Briton Rivière Briton Rivière (14 August 1840 in London20 April 1920 in London) was a British artist of Huguenot descent. He exhibited a variety of paintings at the Royal Academy, but devoted much of his life to animal paintings. Biography Briton's fat ...

, R.A., one of four children with his wife from 1830 Ann Jarvis, a still-life painter.

Works

During the 1820s Riviere exhibited at the Royal Academy and the British Institution a number of portraits, domestic subjects, and landscapes. In 1843 he sent to the

Westminster Hall The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north bank ...

competition a cartoon, the subject of which was a "Council of Ancient Britons"; and in 1844 a fresco, ''An Act of Mercy''; and a painting in oils, ''Council of Ancient Britons''. In 1845 he sent to Westminster Hall a sketch, ''Prince Henry, afterwards Henry V, acknowledging the authority of Chief Justice Gascoigne'', with a portion of the subject in fresco; and in 1847 an oil-painting, ''The Acts of Mercy''. Riviere was also a landscape-painter, both in oil and in watercolours, and a sculptor. His last exhibited work was a portrait of

Philip Wynter Philip Wynter D.D. (1793–1871) was an English clergyman and academic. Career Wynter was the President of St John's College, Oxford, from 1828 to 1871, and the editor of the works of Joseph Hall. While President at St John's College, he was also ...

, president of St John's College, Oxford, which was at the Royal Academy in 1860.

Notes

External links

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Riviere, William 1806 births 1876 deaths English painters British art teachers Burials at St Sepulchre's Cemetery