Edward Villiers Rippingille
Encyclopedia
Edward Villiers Rippingille (c. 1790–1859) was an English
oil painter
and watercolourist who was a member of the informal group of artists which has come to be known as the Bristol School
. In that group he was a particularly close associate of both Edward Bird
and Francis Danby
.
, Norfolk
, the son of a farmer. His year of birth is now believed to be c. 1790 rather than 1798, as previously thought. In 1813 he exhibited at the Norwich Society of Artists, and showed Enlisting at the Royal Academy
.
, where he participated in the sketching activities of the Bristol School. Rippingille's Sketching Party in Leigh Woods (c. 1828) depicts a sketching excursion in Leigh Woods
typical of those made by the school's members. He worked particularly closely with Edward Bird, and was influenced by Bird's genre painting, which was naturalistic and freshly coloured. In 1814 they both exhibited works at the Royal Academy with the same subject, The Cheat Detected. Rippingille was also a close friend of Francis Danby, and his style developed alongside that of Danby under Bird's influence. In 1819 Rippingille had a success at the Royal Academy with The Post Office. In 1822 the Royal Academy saw The Recruiting Sergeant, a work following the style of Bird, and The Funeral Procession of William Canynge to St Mary Redcliffe, 1474. These works were among Rippingille's finest achievements in the fields of genre and historical painting respectively.
He exhibited by himself at the new Bristol Institution in 1823, and in 1824 was one of the organisers of the first exhibition there by local artists. In 1824 he exhibited The Stage Coach Breakfast at the Royal Academy. This is his best known painting. It depicts some of the literary figures associated with Bristol: Samuel Taylor Coleridge
, William Wordsworth
and Robert Southey
.
. In 1835, returning to London, he held his own exhibition at Regent Street
. From 1837 he conducted trips to Italy and concentrated on Italian subjects. He died on 22 April 1859 at Swan Village railway station
in the West Midlands
.
Rippingille had a brother, Alexander, who was also a painter working in Bristol.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
oil painter
Oil painting
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil—especially in early modern Europe, linseed oil. Often an oil such as linseed was boiled with a resin such as pine resin or even frankincense; these were called 'varnishes' and were prized for their body...
and watercolourist who was a member of the informal group of artists which has come to be known as the Bristol School
Bristol School
The Bristol School is a term applied retrospectively to describe the informal association and works of a group of artists working in Bristol, England, in the early 19th century. It was mainly active in the 1820s, although the origins and influences of the school have been traced over the...
. In that group he was a particularly close associate of both Edward Bird
Edward Bird
Edward Bird was an English genre painter who spent most of his working life in Bristol, where the Bristol School of artists formed around him....
and Francis Danby
Francis Danby
Francis Danby was an Irish painter of the Romantic era. His imaginative, dramatic landscapes were comparable to those of John Martin. Danby initially developed his imaginative style while he was the central figure in a group of artists who have come to be known as the Bristol School...
.
Early life
Rippingille was born in King's LynnKing's Lynn
King's Lynn is a sea port and market town in the ceremonial county of Norfolk in the East of England. It is situated north of London and west of Norwich. The population of the town is 42,800....
, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, the son of a farmer. His year of birth is now believed to be c. 1790 rather than 1798, as previously thought. In 1813 he exhibited at the Norwich Society of Artists, and showed Enlisting at the Royal Academy
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...
.
Bristol School
He moved to BristolBristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, where he participated in the sketching activities of the Bristol School. Rippingille's Sketching Party in Leigh Woods (c. 1828) depicts a sketching excursion in Leigh Woods
Leigh Woods
Leigh Woods is a 2 square kilometre area of woodland on the south-west side of the Avon Gorge, opposite the English city of Bristol and north of the Ashton Court estate. It has been designated as a National Nature Reserve. Small mountain biking circuits are present in the woods and the area is a...
typical of those made by the school's members. He worked particularly closely with Edward Bird, and was influenced by Bird's genre painting, which was naturalistic and freshly coloured. In 1814 they both exhibited works at the Royal Academy with the same subject, The Cheat Detected. Rippingille was also a close friend of Francis Danby, and his style developed alongside that of Danby under Bird's influence. In 1819 Rippingille had a success at the Royal Academy with The Post Office. In 1822 the Royal Academy saw The Recruiting Sergeant, a work following the style of Bird, and The Funeral Procession of William Canynge to St Mary Redcliffe, 1474. These works were among Rippingille's finest achievements in the fields of genre and historical painting respectively.
He exhibited by himself at the new Bristol Institution in 1823, and in 1824 was one of the organisers of the first exhibition there by local artists. In 1824 he exhibited The Stage Coach Breakfast at the Royal Academy. This is his best known painting. It depicts some of the literary figures associated with Bristol: Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet, Romantic, literary critic and philosopher who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets. He is probably best known for his poems The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Kubla...
, William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth was a major English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with the 1798 joint publication Lyrical Ballads....
and Robert Southey
Robert Southey
Robert Southey was an English poet of the Romantic school, one of the so-called "Lake Poets", and Poet Laureate for 30 years from 1813 to his death in 1843...
.
Later years
In 1830 Rippingille left Bristol and travelled to France and Germany. He returned to London where he married in 1832, before travelling to France again, in the company of James Baker PyneJames Baker Pyne
-External links:*...
. In 1835, returning to London, he held his own exhibition at Regent Street
Regent Street
Regent Street is one of the major shopping streets in London's West End, well known to tourists and Londoners alike, and famous for its Christmas illuminations...
. From 1837 he conducted trips to Italy and concentrated on Italian subjects. He died on 22 April 1859 at Swan Village railway station
Swan Village railway station
Swan Village railway station was an intermediate station on the Great Western Railway's Birmingham Snow Hill-Wolverhampton Low Level Line. It was opened in 1854. It was the last station before the Dudley Branch of the line diverged from the main line. The Dudley branch closed in 1964 as part of the...
in the West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
.
Rippingille had a brother, Alexander, who was also a painter working in Bristol.