The directory «Artists»

Pickersgill Henry William
(1782—1875)

English painter, born in London on 3 December 1782. His brother, Richard (active 1818–53) was also a painter, specialising in marine scenes and landscapes. Stylistic links with the works of Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769–1830) have led to suggestions that Henry may have worked for a time in his studio. He was certainly a pupil of George Arnald (1763–1841), the prolific painter of landscapes and genre pictures. Following training at the Royal Academy schools, Pickersgill became a successful painter of portraits, attracting discerning sitters such as William Wordsworth, Elizabeth Barrett-Browning and Michael Faraday. He exhibited over 400 portraits at the Royal Academy and British Institution between 1806 and 1872. His success was recognized in 1826 when he was elected Royal Academician. He died in London on 2 April 1875. His eldest son, Henry Hall Pickersgill (1812–61) was also an artist, supplementing the painting of portraits in the tradition of his father with historical genre scenes.

Great Britain, 2007, Hannah More