James Peale (1749 – May 24, 1831) was an American

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

, best known for his miniature and

still life A still life (: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly wikt:inanimate, inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or artificiality, human-m ...

paintings, and a younger brother of noted painter

Charles Willson Peale Charles Willson Peale (April 15, 1741 – February 22, 1827) was an American painter, military officer, scientist, and naturalist. In 1775, inspired by the American Revolution, Peale moved from his native Maryland to Philadelphia, where he set ...

Early life

Peale was born in

Chestertown, Maryland Chestertown is a town in Kent County, Maryland, United States. The population was 5,532 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the county seat of Kent County, the oldest county in Maryland. History Founded in 1706, Chestertown ...

, the second child, after Charles, of Charles Peale (1709–1750) and Margaret Triggs (1709–1791). His father died when he was an infant, and the family moved to

Annapolis Annapolis ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland. It is the county seat of Anne Arundel County and its only incorporated city. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

. In 1762, he began to serve apprenticeships there, first in a saddlery and later in a cabinetmaking shop. After his brother Charles returned from

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1769, where he had studied with

Benjamin West Benjamin West (October 10, 1738 – March 11, 1820) was a British-American artist who painted famous historical scenes such as ''The Death of Nelson (West painting), The Death of Nelson'', ''The Death of General Wolfe'', the ''Treaty of Paris ( ...

, Peale served as his assistant and learned how to paint.

Career

James Peale - Still Life with Vegetables - Google Art Project

Peale worked in his brother's studio until January 14, 1776, when he accepted a commission in the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

as an ensign in

William Smallwood William Smallwood (1732February 14, 1792) was an American planter, soldier and politician from Charles County, Maryland. He served in the American Revolutionary War, rising to the rank of major general. He was serving as the fourth Governo ...

's regiment. Within three months he was promoted to captain, and during the next three years fought in the battles of

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

, White Plains, Trenton,

Princeton Princeton University is a private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the Unit ...

, Brandywine, Germantown, and

Monmouth Monmouth ( or ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8 ...

. He resigned his army commission in 1779, and moved to

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

to live with his brother. (One notable later collaboration, however, was in 1788 to make floats for Philadelphia's Federal Procession in honor of the newly drafted

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally includi ...

). At the conclusion of the Revolutionary War Peale was admitted as an original member of The

Society of the Cincinnati The Society of the Cincinnati is a lineage society, fraternal, hereditary society founded in 1783 to commemorate the American Revolutionary War that saw the creation of the United States. Membership is largely restricted to descendants of milita ...

of Maryland when it was established in 1783.Metcalf, Bryce (1938). ''Original Members and Other Officers Eligible to the

, 1783-1938: With the Institution, Rules of Admission, and Lists of the Officers of the General and State Societies'' Strasburg, VA: Shenandoah Publishing House, Inc., p. 246. At the outset of his painting career Peale painted

portrait A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face is always predominant. In arts, a portrait may be represented as half body and even full body. If the subject in full body better r ...

s and

still-life A still life (: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or human-made (drinking glasses, books, ...

, and by the mid-1780s had established his reputation. At about this time, however, Charles turned over his own miniature portrait practice to him, and throughout the 1790s and early 19th century Peale devoted himself to miniature painting. Much of this work was

watercolor Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin 'water'), is a painting metho ...

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and Tooth, teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mamm ...

. In 1795 Peale exhibited a still life of fruit along with nine miniatures and his family portrait at the Columbianum, a short-lived art academy in Philadelphia. Around 1810, as Peale's eyesight began to weaken, he gave up painting miniatures to turn to large portraits and still-life subjects that were greatly admired and widely exhibited in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, and

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

. The total number of Peale's landscape paintings remains unknown, but he executed more than 200 watercolor miniatures on ivory, perhaps 100 still-life paintings, fewer than 70 oil portraits, and at least 8 history paintings.

Personal life

Portrait of margaretta peale james peale

In 1782 he married Mary Claypoole (1753-1828), a daughter of

James Claypoole James Claypoole, Sr. (January 22, 1720/21September 21, 1784) was an American portrait painter, house painter, and glazier. He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Joseph Claypoole (1677-1740/41)Records of Christ Church, Philadelphia, ...

and sister of portrait painter James Claypoole Jr., after which he established his own household and artistic career. Together, Mary and James were the parents of seven children, three of whom became accomplished painters in their own right, including:The Claypoole Family
/ref> * Maria Claypoole Peale (1787–1866) also became a painter of still lifes, though of less distinction than her sisters. * James Peale Jr. (1789–1876), who married his cousin, Sophonisba Peale (1801–1878), daughter of

Raphaelle Peale Raphaelle Peale (sometimes spelled Raphael Peale; February 17, 1774 – March 4, 1825) is considered the first professional American painter of still-life. Biography Peale was born in Annapolis, Maryland, the fifth child, though eldest survivin ...

. * Anna Claypoole Peale (1791–1878), a miniaturist and still-life painter *

Margaretta Angelica Peale Margaretta Angelica Peale (October 1, 1795 – January 17, 1882) was an American painter, one of the Peale family of artists. The daughter of James Peale, she was the sister of Sarah, Anna, and Maria Peale. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, s ...

(1796–1882), painter of trompe l’oeil subjects and tabletop fruit *

Sarah Miriam Peale Sarah Miriam Peale (May 19, 1800 – February 4, 1885) was an American portrait painter, considered the first American woman to succeed as a professional artist. One of a family of artists of whom her uncle Charles Willson Peale was the most illu ...

(1800–1885), a portraitist and still-life painter * Jane Ramsay Peale * Eleanor Peale. Peale died in Philadelphia on May 24, 1831, and is buried at

Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church Gloria Dei Church, known locally as Old Swedes, is a historic church located in the Southwark, Philadelphia, Southwark neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at 929 South Water Street, bounded by Christian Street on the north, South Chris ...

cemetery along with this wife and six children.Miller, Lillian B. ''The Peale Family: Creation of a Legacy 1770-1870''. Washington, D.C.: Abbeville Press, 1996.

Gallery

File:James Peale, Still Life, oil on panel, c. 1824, HAA.jpg, ''Still Life'', oil on panel painting by James Peale, ,

Honolulu Museum of Art The Honolulu Museum of Art (formerly the Honolulu Academy of Arts) is an art museum in Honolulu, Hawaii, Hawaii. The museum is the largest of its kind in the state, and was founded in 1922 by Anna Rice Cooke. It has one of the largest single co ...

Image:James Peal's oil painting 'Fruits of Autumn'.jpg, ''Fruits of Autumn'' Image:View on the wissahickon james peale.jpg, ''View on the Wissahickon'' Image:Washington 1787-1790.jpg, ''George Washington'' File:The Battle of Princeton by James Peale.jpg, ''The Battle of Princeton'', 1782 File:The Artist and His Family James Peale.jpeg, ''The Artist and His Family'', 1795.

Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts (PAFA) is a museum and private art school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1805, it is the longest continuously operating art museum and art school in the United States. The academy's museum ...

Image:Anna and mararetta peale james peale.jpg, Anna and Margaretta Peale Image:James Peal's painting 'The Ramsay-Polk Family at Carpenter’s Point, Cecil County, Maryland'.jpg, ''The Ramsay-Polk Family at Carpenter’s Point, Cecil County, Maryland'' File:The Generals at Yorktown James Peale.jpeg, ''The Generals at Yorktown'',

Colonial Williamsburg Foundation Colonial Williamsburg is a living-history museum and private foundation presenting a part of the historic district in Williamsburg, Virginia. Its historic area includes several hundred restored or recreated buildings from the 18th century, whe ...

File:Sir Peter Parker's Attack Against Fort Moultrie.jpeg, ''Sir Peter Parker's Attack Against Fort Moultrie'',

File:The Ambush of Captain Allan McIane.jpeg, ''The Ambush of Captain Allan McIane'', 1803,

Utah Museum of Fine Arts The Utah Museum of Fine Arts (UMFA) is a state and university art museum located in downtown Salt Lake City on the University of Utah campus. Housed in the Marcia and John Price Museum Building near Rice-Eccles Stadium, the museum holds a permane ...

File:Encounter between Capt. Allan McLane and a British dragoon at Frankfort, near Philadelphia - NARA - 530954.jpg, Another version by James Peale's painting of encounter between Allan McLane and British dragoons File:Anna Sophia Alexander Robertson James Peale 1816.jpeg, ''Anna Sophia Alexander Robertson (Mrs. William Theberton)'', 1816 File:Portrait of William Young James Peale.jpeg, ''Portrait of William Young'', 1817

References

External links

*
''American paintings & historical prints from the Middendorf collection''
an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Peale (no. 6)
Union List of Artist Names, Getty Vocabularies.
ULAN Full Record Display for James Peale, Sr. Getty Vocabulary Program, Getty Research Institute. Los Angeles, California.
The Society of the Cincinnati

The American Revolution Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peale, James 1749 births 1831 deaths 18th-century American painters 18th-century American male artists American male painters 19th-century American painters 19th-century American male artists Continental Army officers from Maryland

James James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

Sibling artists People from Chestertown, Maryland Painters from Maryland People from colonial Maryland Burials at Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church