1778-1860 Rembrandt Peale Galleries Rembrandt Peale (February 22, 1778 ?C October 3, 1860) was a 19th century American artist that received critical acclaim for his portraits of presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. Although modern art critics would consider Peale??s artwork as French neoclassical, its dark and stylized characteristics are similar to 15th and 16th century paintings. Rembrandt Peale was born the third of six surviving children (eleven had died) to his mother, Rachel Brewer, and father, Charles Willson Peale in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, on February 22, 1778. The father, Charles, also a notable artist, taught each child to paint scenery and portraiture, and Rembrandt was no exception. Charles tutored Rembrandt about the importance of having a strong mind from learning arts and sciences. At the age of eight, Rembrandt discovered drawing, and at thirteen, painted his first known self-portrait. Later on in his life, Rembrandt Peale "often showed this painting to young beginners, to encourage them to go from 'bad' to better..." like his steady progressions to become a successful portraitist. A year after his mother??s death and remarriage of his father, Rembrandt Peale left the school of the arts, thereby applying his time to completing his first ever self-portrait at the age of 13. The canvas illustrates early mastery of a young aspiring artist, seeming very mature. The clothes, however give the notion that Peale over-exaggerated what a 13 year old would look like. This style demonstrates early forms of neoclassicism by the looks of Peale's angel-like hair, the way it waves and curls in such a fashion so as to depict an angel from a general Renaissance artist's works of art. In July of 1787, Charles Willson Peale introduced his son Rembrandt to George Washington, where the young aspirant artist watched his father paint the remarkable figure of the country. In 1795, at the age of 17, Rembrandt painted an aging Washington, though the painter had depicted the politician as far more aged than the original facial characteristics. It did, nevertheless attain praise and Rembrandt had begun his debut. At the age of 20, Rembrandt married 22-year-old Eleanor May Short (1776-1836) at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Philadelphia. During their marriage, Rembrandt and Eleanor had nine children: Rosalba, Eleanor, Sarah Miriam, Michael Angelo, and Emma Clara among them. In 1822, Peale moved to New York City where he embarked on an attempt to paint what he hoped would become the "standard likeness" of Washington. He studied portraits by other artists including John Trumbull, Gilbert Stuart and his own father, as well as his own 1795 picture which had never truly satisfied him. His resulting work Patriae Pater, completed in 1824, depicts Washington through an oval window, and is considered by many to be second only to Gilbert Stuart's iconic Athenaeum painting of the first president. Peale subsequently attempted to capitalize on the success of what quickly became known as his "Porthole" picture. Patriae Pater was purchased by Congress in 1832 and still hangs in the U.S. Capitol. Later on, Peale made over 70 detailed replicas of the same "father of our country", the first President of the United States. Peale continued to paint other noted portraits, such as those of the third president Thomas Jefferson while he was in office (1805), and later on a portrait of Chief Justice John Marshall.  Related Paintings of Rembrandt Peale :. | Painting of Thomas Jefferson | Self portrait detail | Biblical Scene | Christ and the Woman of Samaria | Portrait of a Woman with a Pink Carnation |
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Robert Dowling
Australian Painter, 1827-1886 was an Australian colonial artist. Dowling was born in England the youngest son of Rev. Henry Dowling and his wife Elizabeth, nee Darke. He was brought to Launceston, Tasmania with his parents in 1839 in the Janet. He received lessons from Thomas Bock and Frederick Strange, and in 1850 advertised as a portrait painter. In 1856 Dowling left for London partly with the help of friends in Launceston. He exhibited 16 pictures at the Royal Academy between 1859 and 1882 and others at the British Institute. Returning to Launceston he afterwards came to Melbourne and painted portraits of Sir Henry Loch, Dr James Moorhouse, Francis Ormond, and others. He went to London again in 1886 but died shortly after his arrival. Dowling was a conscientious painter of figure subjects, often scriptural or eastern.
William Woodward
(1 May 1859 - 17 November 1939) was a U.S. artist and educator, best known for his impressionist paintings of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast of the United States. Woodward was born in Seekonk, Massachusetts. His younger brother Ellsworth Woodward also became a notable artist. William Woodward studied art at the Rhode Island School of Design, and later at the Academie Julian where he received instruction from Gustave Boulanger and Jules Lefebvre. View of the Napoleon House in New Orleans, 1904In 1884 Woodward was hired to teach fine art, mechanical drawing, and architectural drawing at Tulane University in New Orleans. He became interested in the history and architecture of the city, especially the old French Quarter, which at the time had become largely neglected with many of the historic structures in a state of decay. In 1895 he led a successful campaign to save the Cabildo from demolition. His series of paintings of French Quarter scenes helped shape awareness of the neighborhood's architectural heritage and spurred the formation of the Vieux Carre Commission to help preserve it. He started teaching architectural engineering at Tulane in 1894 and helped found the Tulane School of Architecture in 1907, as well as the Newcomb School of Art. In 1921 he suffered an accident and used a wheelchair for the rest of his life. He retired from Tulane the following year, and in 1923 moved to Biloxi, Mississippi. He invented the fiberloid dry etching process. He continued to paint and produce etchings for the rest of his life.