John Singleton Copley
John Singleton Copley, American painter, July 3, 1738 - September 9, 1815
Copley was born in Boston and had no formal academic art education. He was largely self-taught, though he probably learned the use of painting and engraving tools from his stepfather, Peter Pelham, a portrait painter, engraver, and teacher. Benjamin West and Sir Joshua Reynolds later encouraged him to study in Europe.
Copley worked first in Boston, with a temporary stay in New York in 1771–1772 and a brief visit to Philadelphia. In 1774 he left Boston for London and then traveled through Paris, Genoa, Rome, Naples, Florence, Parma, Mantua, Venice, and other European cities before settling permanently in London.
His early work is best known for precise, direct, psychologically observant portraits of colonial Americans, often with sharply rendered fabrics, objects, and social details. After moving to Britain, he increasingly worked in grander historical, political, and narrative subjects, while continuing to paint portraits.
His honors included election as a Fellow of the Society of Artists of Great Britain in 1766, Associate of the Royal Academy in 1776, Royal Academician in 1783, and Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1791. No formal pupils are securely associated with him, though John Trumbull was strongly impressed by him as a young artist.
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