Historical Figures Codexery

Joshua Reynolds

The leading portrait artist of the 18th-century and arguably one of the greatest artists in the history of art.

Joshua Reynolds

Joshua Reynolds · via Wikipedia: Joshua Reynolds · Public domain

Reynolds promoted the "Grand Style" in painting, which depended on idealisation of the imperfect.[1] The portrait specialist Sir Joshua Reynolds (1723–1792) was an English painter.[1] Knighted in 1769 by George III, Reynolds was both a founder and the inaugural president of the Royal Academy of Arts.[2]

Quick Facts

Born
16 July 1723
Birthplace
Plympton, Devon, England
Died
23 February 1792
Place of death
Leicester Fields, London, England
Resting place
St Paul's Cathedral

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Reynolds was born in Plympton, Devon, on 16 July 1723, as the third son of the Reverend Samuel Reynolds.[3] He was gregarious and keenly intellectual, with many friends from London's intelligentsia.[4] Reynolds was one of the earliest members of the Royal Society of Arts and in 1768 became the first president of the Royal Academy of Arts.[5] Reynolds' early artistic inclination led to his 1740 apprenticeship with Thomas Hudson, a London portraitist who, like Reynolds, was Devon-born.[6]

Commodore Augustus Keppel, whom Reynolds met in 1749, extended an invitation to sail on the HMS Centurion to the Mediterranean.[7] Reynolds' studio routine involved extensive daily work, with holidays being infrequent.[4] The loss of sight in his left eye in 1789 compelled Reynolds to retire.[8]

What the cited sources add

The same source notes that Reynolds adapted the Grand manner very successfully to portraiture, inventing the high art portrait.[9] The National Trust record of Angelica Kauffman's portrait shows Reynolds wearing Van Dyck costume and seated beside a bust of Michelangelo.[10] Dr Nicholas Cullinan called the Portrait of Mai "by far the most significant acquisition the National Portrait Gallery has ever made".[11] Dr Timothy Potts stated that the portrait is "the most tangible and visually compelling manifestation of Europe’s first encounters with the peoples of the Pacific islands".[11]

According to the Tate's entry on the "Grand manner", Reynolds advocated that painters should avoid a literal imitation of nature, instead pursuing a generalized, idealized form.[9] The Art Fund article notes that the National Portrait Gallery and Getty jointly acquired the painting, with the acquisition occurring during the tricentenary of Reynolds' birth.[11]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Joshua Reynolds" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Russell, "ART VIEW; ANYBODY WHO WAS SOMEBODY KNOCKED AT HIS DOOR", The New York Times, 26 January 1986; Why This Joshua Reynolds Masterpiece is Pivotal in Art History? HENI talks, June 21 2024, Lucy Peltz speaks from time 0.13 seconds onwards. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Joshua Reynolds" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Joshua Reynolds: the overlooked master who revolutionised British art, Jonathan Jones, Guardian newspaper, 9 March 2015, paragraph 18 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Joshua Reynolds" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Postle, Martin, "Reynolds, Sir Joshua (1723–1792)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, October 2009. Retrieved (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Joshua Reynolds" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Angelica Kauffman, Sir Joshua Reynolds", National Trust (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Joshua Reynolds" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Wendorf, Richard, Sir Joshua Reynolds: The Painter in Society (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1998), p 46. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Joshua Reynolds" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Penny, "Reynolds", Royal Academy of Arts, 1986, p. 17–18; Penny, "Reynolds", Royal Academy of Arts, 1986, p. 17–18; Penny, "Reynolds", Royal Academy of Arts, 1986, p. 17–18 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Joshua Reynolds" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Leslie and Taylor 1865, volume 1, pp. 35–7; Leslie and Taylor 1865, volume 1, p. 39.; "Grand manner", Tate; Penny, "Reynolds", Royal Academy of Arts, 1986, p. 17–18 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Joshua Reynolds" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: McIntyre, p. 513.; McIntyre, p. 487. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. "Grand manner", Tate. facts only, no text reused. tate.org.uk
  10. "Angelica Kauffman, Sir Joshua Reynolds", National Trust. facts only, no text reused. nationaltrustcollections.org.uk
  11. Simon Schama, Art Fund, To support the Omai campaign, historian Simon Schama takes a look at this incredible portrait and explains what makes it such an importa. facts only, no text reused. artfund.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Joshua Reynolds (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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