Ralph Earl (May 11, 1751August 16, 1801) was an American artist known for his

landscape paintings A landscape is the visible features of an area of Terrestrial ecoregion, land, its landforms, and how they integrate with Nature, natural or human-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Diction ...

and numerous portraits.

Early life

Ralph Earl was born on May 11, 1751, in either Shrewsbury or Leicester, Massachusetts, the oldest of four children of Ralph Earle and Phebe Whittemore Earl. By 1774, he was working in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

, as a portrait painter. In the autumn of 1774, Earl returned to Leicester, Massachusetts, to marry his cousin, Sarah Gates. A few months later, their daughter Phebe was born in January 1775. Earl left them both with Sarah's parents and returned to New Haven to continue painting portraits. Earl's wife and daughter joined him in New Haven in November 1776, and they lived there until May 1777, when their son, John, was born. Sarah later attested that this six-month period "was all the time we kept house together."

Career

Like many of the colonial craftsmen, Earl was self-taught, and for many years was an itinerant painter. In 1775, Earl visited Lexington and Concord, which were the sites of recent battles in the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

. Although his father was a colonel in the Revolutionary army, Earl himself was a Loyalist. Working in collaboration with the engraver Amos Doolittle, Earl drew four battle scenes that were made into pro-Revolutionary propaganda prints. In 1778, he left behind his wife and daughter and escaped to England by disguising himself as the servant of British army captain John Money. In

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, he entered the studio of Benjamin West, and painted the king and many notables. Earl continued painting portraits in the town of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

. He later married Ann Whiteside, an English woman, despite the fact that he had never ended his marriage with Sarah Gates. In 1785 or 1786, Earl returned to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

with his new wife.

Return to America

After his return to America, he made portraits of Timothy Dwight, Governor Caleb Strong, Roger Sherman, and other prominent men. He also painted a large picture of

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the Canada–United States border, border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York (s ...

. In September 1786, while living in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, Earl was imprisoned for failing to pay his personal debts. Even while in jail, he drew portraits of his visitors, friends, and family of the Society for the Relief of Distressed Debtors. He was released in January 1788.

Personal life

Earl probably trained his son, painter Ralph Eleaser Whiteside Earl, and was an influence on his nephew

Augustus Earle Augustus Earle (1793–1838) was a British painter. Unlike earlier artists who worked outside Europe and were employed on voyages of exploration or worked abroad for wealthy, often aristocratic patrons, Earle was able to operate quite indepen ...

who is reputed to have been the first European artist to have visited all five continents. Ralph's brother James Earl (1761–1796) was also a portrait painter. He died in Bolton, Connecticut, on August 16, 1801, at age 50.

Alcoholism Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...

is believed to be the main cause of death, as he struggled with it for many years.

Influence

Earl was also an influence on John Brewster, Jr.

Gallery

File:'Portrait of Henriette Luard' by Ralph Earl, 1783.jpg, ''Portrait of Henriette Luard'' (1783) File:A Master in Chancery Entering the House of Lords.png, ''A Master in Chancery Entering the House of Lords'' (1783) File:Richard varick officer continental army.png, '' Richard Varick'' (), Albany Institute of History & Art File:Major General Friedrich Wilhelm Augustus Baron von Steuben by Ralph Earl.jpeg, alt=Painting Steuben in uniform, ''Portrait of Major General von Steuben wearing the badge of the Society of the Cincinnati'' (c. 1786) File:Marinus Willett MET DT2936.jpg, '' Marinus Willett'' (1791) File:Mrs. Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton.jpg, ''Portrait of Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton'' () File:Brooklyn Museum - Clarissa Seymour (later Mrs. Truman Marsh) - Ralph Earl - overall.jpg, ''Portrait of Clarissa Seymour (later Mrs. Truman Marsh)'' (1789),

Brooklyn Museum The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 500,000 objects. Located near the Prospect Heig ...

File:Ralph Earl - Moses Seymour, Jr. - 2003.285 - Cleveland Museum of Art.tiff, ''Moses Seymour, Jr.'' (1789), Cleveland Museum of Art File:Ralph Earl - Elijah Boardman - WGA7452.jpg, ''Portrait of Elijah Boardman'' (1789) File:Esther Boardman.jpg, ''Portrait of Esther Boardman'' (1789),

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

File:OliverAbigail.jpg, ''Portrait of Oliver and Abigail Ellsworth'' (1792), Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford File:Mrs_Benjamin_Tallmadge_and_son_Henry_Floyd_and_daughter_Maria_Jones_1790.jpeg, ''Portrait of Mrs. Benjamin Tallmadge with son Henry Floyd and daughter Maria Jones'' (1790) File:Benjamin_Tallmadge_by_Ralph_Earl.jpeg, ''Portrait of Benjamin Tallmadge with son William'' (1790)

References

External links

* * Portrait of Roger Sherman, 1775 (age 24)
Earl-PortraitRSherman
* "Early American Paintings" (biography), Worcester Art, 2005, webpage

Union List of Artist Names, Getty Vocabularies.
ULAN Full Record Display for Ralph Earl. Getty Vocabulary Program, Getty Research Institute. Los Angeles, California. * "Early American Paintings" (biography), Worcester Art, 2005, webpage

{{DEFAULTSORT:Earl, Ralph 1751 births 1801 deaths 18th-century American painters 18th-century American male artists American male painters People from Leicester, Massachusetts Artists from Massachusetts American portrait painters Artists from New Haven, Connecticut People imprisoned for debt Bigamists