Richard Cosway
Encyclopedia
Richard Cosway was a leading English
portrait
painter—more accurately a miniaturist—of the Regency
era. He was a contemporary of John Smart
, George Engleheart
, William Wood, and Richard Crosse
. His wife was the Italian
painter Maria Cosway
, a close friend of Thomas Jefferson
.
, the son of a schoolmaster, he was initially educated at Blundell's School
but allowed to travel to London
aged just 12 to take lessons in learning. He won a prize from the Society of Artists in 1754 and by 1760 had established his own business. He exhibited his first works aged just 20 in 1762 and was soon in demand. Such was his success, that still not 30, Cosway was elected one of the founder members of the Royal Academy
(he is included in a group portrait of the 1768 founders, though some accounts suggest he was appointed an Academician three years later, in 1771).
in 1780 and was appointed Painter to the Prince of Wales
in 1785—the only time this title was ever awarded. His subjects included the Prince's first wife, Maria Anne Fitzherbert
, and various English and French
aristocrats, including Madame du Barry
, mistress of King Louis XV of France
.
Cosway's pupils included Andrew Plimer
(1763–1837).
From 1995 to 1996, the National Portrait Gallery in London held an exhibition entitled Richard and Maria Cosway: Regency Artists of Taste and Fashion, with 250 works on display.
artist Maria Hadfield
. Maria was a composer, musician and authority on girls' education and was much admired by Thomas Jefferson
, who wrote letters to her decrying her marriage to another man and kept an engraving made from one of Cosway's paintings of Maria at Monticello
.
The Cosways' marriage is thought to be an arranged marriage
and later a marriage of convenience due to his being 20 years her senior. Richard was "well known as a libertine and commonly described as resembling a monkey." The film Jefferson in Paris
depicts Maria Cosway's romance with Thomas Jefferson
and also depicts Richard Cosway as effeminate, something which is not certain historically.
Richard realized his wife's talent and helped her to develop it.
In 1784, the Cosways moved into Schomberg House, Pall Mall
, which became a fashionable salon for London society. In 1791 they moved to a larger house in Stratford Place. However, the marriage did not last, eventually being annulled.
In later life, Cosway also suffered from mental disorders and spent some time in various institutions. He died in London
in 1821 and was buried at Marylebone
New Church. Sir John Soane bought more than 30 objects put up for sale at auction after Cosway's death.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
portrait
Portrait
thumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...
painter—more accurately a miniaturist—of the Regency
English Regency
The Regency era in the United Kingdom is the period between 1811—when King George III was deemed unfit to rule and his son, the Prince of Wales, ruled as his proxy as Prince Regent—and 1820, when the Prince Regent became George IV on the death of his father....
era. He was a contemporary of John Smart
John Smart
John Smart , was an English painters of portrait miniatures. He was a contemporary of Richard Cosway, George Engleheart, William Wood and Richard Crosse.-Biography:He was born in Norfolk, but not much is known of his early life...
, George Engleheart
George Engleheart
George Engleheart was one of the greatest English painters of portrait miniatures, and a contemporary of Richard Cosway, John Smart, William Wood, and Richard Crosse.-Family and home:...
, William Wood, and Richard Crosse
Richard Crosse
Richard Crosse was a leading English painter of portrait miniatures. He was a contemporary of John Smart, George Engleheart, Richard Cosway and William Wood.-Family and home:...
. His wife was the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
painter Maria Cosway
Maria Cosway
Maria Cosway was an Anglo-Italian artist, who exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. She also worked in France, where she cultivated a large circle of friends and clients, and later in Italy. She commissioned the first portrait of Napoleon to be seen in England...
, a close friend of Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
.
Early years
Born in Tiverton, DevonDevon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, the son of a schoolmaster, he was initially educated at Blundell's School
Blundell's School
Blundell's School is a co-educational day and boarding independent school located in the town of Tiverton in the county of Devon, England. The school was founded in 1604 by the will of Peter Blundell, one of the richest men in England at the time, and relocated to its present location on the...
but allowed to travel to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
aged just 12 to take lessons in learning. He won a prize from the Society of Artists in 1754 and by 1760 had established his own business. He exhibited his first works aged just 20 in 1762 and was soon in demand. Such was his success, that still not 30, Cosway was elected one of the founder members of 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...
(he is included in a group portrait of the 1768 founders, though some accounts suggest he was appointed an Academician three years later, in 1771).
Career in art
He painted the future King George IVGeorge IV of the United Kingdom
George IV was the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and also of Hanover from the death of his father, George III, on 29 January 1820 until his own death ten years later...
in 1780 and was appointed Painter to the Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
in 1785—the only time this title was ever awarded. His subjects included the Prince's first wife, Maria Anne Fitzherbert
Maria Anne Fitzherbert
Maria Fitzherbert , was the woman with whom the future George IV secretly undertook a form of marriage, and his companion for a large part of his adult life. However the marriage in England was invalid under English civil laws concerning royal marriages...
, and various English and French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
aristocrats, including Madame du Barry
Madame du Barry
Jeanne Bécu, comtesse du Barry was the last Maîtresse-en-titre of Louis XV of France and one of the victims of the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution.-Early life:...
, mistress of King Louis XV of France
Louis XV of France
Louis XV was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1 September 1715 until his death. He succeeded his great-grandfather at the age of five, his first cousin Philippe II, Duke of Orléans, served as Regent of the kingdom until Louis's majority in 1723...
.
Cosway's pupils included Andrew Plimer
Andrew Plimer
Andrew Plimer was a British artist, born in Wellington, Shropshire in 1763 and died in Brighton in 1837.Plimer specialised in portrait miniatures. His work was exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1768 to 1810 and in 1819. His most famous painting is of the three daughters of Sir John Rushout...
(1763–1837).
From 1995 to 1996, the National Portrait Gallery in London held an exhibition entitled Richard and Maria Cosway: Regency Artists of Taste and Fashion, with 250 works on display.
Personal life
On 18 January 1781, Cosway married the Anglo-ItalianItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
artist Maria Hadfield
Maria Cosway
Maria Cosway was an Anglo-Italian artist, who exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts in London. She also worked in France, where she cultivated a large circle of friends and clients, and later in Italy. She commissioned the first portrait of Napoleon to be seen in England...
. Maria was a composer, musician and authority on girls' education and was much admired by Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
, who wrote letters to her decrying her marriage to another man and kept an engraving made from one of Cosway's paintings of Maria at Monticello
Monticello
Monticello is a National Historic Landmark just outside Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was the estate of Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence, third President of the United States, and founder of the University of Virginia; it is...
.
The Cosways' marriage is thought to be an arranged marriage
Arranged marriage
An arranged marriage is a practice in which someone other than the couple getting married makes the selection of the persons to be wed, meanwhile curtailing or avoiding the process of courtship. Such marriages had deep roots in royal and aristocratic families around the world...
and later a marriage of convenience due to his being 20 years her senior. Richard was "well known as a libertine and commonly described as resembling a monkey." The film Jefferson in Paris
Jefferson in Paris
Jefferson in Paris is a 1995 Franco-American historical drama film directed by James Ivory . The screenplay by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala is a semi-fictional account of Thomas Jefferson's tenure as the Ambassador of the United States to France prior to his Presidency, and his alleged relationships with...
depicts Maria Cosway's romance with Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
and also depicts Richard Cosway as effeminate, something which is not certain historically.
Richard realized his wife's talent and helped her to develop it.
In 1784, the Cosways moved into Schomberg House, Pall Mall
Pall Mall, London
Pall Mall is a street in the City of Westminster, London, and parallel to The Mall, from St. James's Street across Waterloo Place to the Haymarket; while Pall Mall East continues into Trafalgar Square. The street is a major thoroughfare in the St James's area of London, and a section of the...
, which became a fashionable salon for London society. In 1791 they moved to a larger house in Stratford Place. However, the marriage did not last, eventually being annulled.
In later life, Cosway also suffered from mental disorders and spent some time in various institutions. He died in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1821 and was buried at Marylebone
Marylebone
Marylebone is an affluent inner-city area of central London, located within the City of Westminster. It is sometimes written as St. Marylebone or Mary-le-bone....
New Church. Sir John Soane bought more than 30 objects put up for sale at auction after Cosway's death.
External links
- Victoria and Albert Museum miniatures gallery
- Frits Lugt, Les marques de collections de dessins & d'estampes, 1921 and its Supplement 1956, L.628 and L.629, online edition
- A catalogue of the very curious, extensive, and valuable library of Richard Cosway, Esq. R.A, digital facsimile from Houghton LibraryHoughton LibraryHoughton Library is the primary repository for rare books and manuscripts at Harvard University. It is part of the Harvard College Library within the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Houghton is located on the south side of Harvard Yard, next to Widener Library.- History :Harvard's first...
, Harvard University.