John Ruskin, February 8, 1819–January 20, 1900, was an English writer, art critic, and artist. Born in London, he was educated at home and at Christ Church, Oxford. His father encouraged his early interests in drawing and poetry, and travel gave him subjects for studies of architecture, geology, and landscape.

Ruskin published Modern Painters, The Seven Lamps of Architecture, and The Stones of Venice. He supported J. M. W. Turner and the Pre-Raphaelite artists, and made drawings and watercolors to record natural and architectural detail. As Slade Professor of Fine Art at Oxford, he taught drawing and assembled a collection of works for his students.

Ruskin spent his final decades at Brantwood, near Coniston, where he died in 1900. His writing influenced debates about art, education, labor, and conservation. His drawings and papers are held by The Ruskin at Lancaster University, the Ashmolean Museum, and other collections.