Samuel Jackson (31 December 1794 – 8 December 1869) was an English

watercolourist Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin 'water'), is a painting method"Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to the S ...

and

oil painter Oil painting is a painting method involving the procedure of painting with pigments combined with a drying oil as the Binder (material), binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on canvas, wood panel, or oil on coppe ...

who has been called the "father" of the

Bristol School The Bristol School (or Bristol School of Artists) is a term applied retrospectively to describe the informal association and works of a group of artists working in Bristol, England, in the early 19th century. It was mainly active in the 182 ...

of art. He also contributed a number of drawings of scenes from

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

to the

topographical Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the landforms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary scienc ...

collection of

George Weare Braikenridge George Weare Braikenridge (1775–1856) was an English antiquarian. He was born in the Colony of Virginia, but lived for most of his life in Bristol, England, where he created a large collection of Bristolian historical and topographical mater ...

. The Braikenridge Collection makes Bristol's early 19th-century appearance one of the best documented of any English city.

Life

Jackson was born on 31 December 1794 in Bristol. His father was an accountant and later a

drysalter Drysalters were dealers in a range of chemical products, including glue, varnish, dye and colourings. They might supply salt or chemicals for preserving food and sometimes also sold pickles, dried meat or related items. The name ''drysalter'' or '' ...

. Jackson became a professional artist by 1822, primarily a watercolourist of

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

. In 1823 Jackson was elected an associate member of the

Society of Painters in Watercolours The Royal Watercolour Society is a British institution of painters working in watercolours. The Society is a centre of excellence for water-based media on paper, which allows for a diverse and interesting range of approaches to the medium of wa ...

. Braikenridge commissioned him to produce less than 30 watercolours, but collected many more of Jackson's Bristol scenes. His Bristol watercolours of the mid 1820s were his most highly regarded work, and have been called the most important part of the work of the Bristol School. John Lewis Roget called him "the father of the school". Jackson was a lifelong friend of

Francis Danby Francis Danby (16 November 1793 – 9 February 1861) was an Irish painter of the Romantic era. His imaginative, dramatic landscapes were comparable to those of John Martin. Danby initially developed his imaginative style while he was the cen ...

, whose influence is present in his watercolours. He may have been Danby's pupil. In 1823 he collaborated with Danby and James Johnson in a

lithography Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the miscibility, immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by ...

project. In 1824 Jackson was one of the organisers of the first exhibition by local artists at the new

Bristol Institution Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. He also seems to have participated from 1832–33 in the revival of the Bristol School's sketching meetings. In 1832 he was the most eminent artist in the first exhibition of the Bristol Society of Artists, and later he continued to play a large role in that society's successor, the Bristol Academy for the Promotion of Fine Arts. Jackson may have visited the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

in 1827; he exhibited West Indian subjects at the Society of Painters in Watercolours in 1828 and 1831. By the 1830s he was also producing scenes of Devon and Wales, and may have visited Switzerland in 1855 and 1858 to produce watercolours of mountain scenery. Jackson died on 8 December 1869 at

Clifton, Bristol Clifton is an inner suburb of Bristol, England, and the name of one of the city's thirty-five Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom, electoral wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells. The easter ...

. His son was the

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

and

marine painter Marine art or maritime art is a form of figurative art (that is, painting, drawing, printmaking and sculpture) that portrays or draws its main inspiration from the sea. Maritime painting is a genre that depicts ships and the sea—a genre parti ...

Samuel Phillips Jackson (1830–94). His daughters

Jane Roeckel Jane Jackson Roeckel (19 October 1833 – 26 August 1907) was a British composer, inventor, pianist, and philanthropist. She composed songs and works for piano and piano rolls, including piano transcriptions of symphonies by composers such as Beeth ...

and Ada Villiers were musicians. The Braikenridge Collection, which holds many of his works, is in the

Bristol Museum & Art Gallery Bristol Museum & Art Gallery is a large museum and art gallery in Bristol, England. The museum is situated in Clifton, about from the city centre. As part of Bristol Culture and Creative Industries it is run by the Bristol City Council with no ...

References

External links

Braikenridge Collection at Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Samuel 1794 births 1869 deaths 19th-century English painters English male painters Painters from Bristol 19th century in Bristol English watercolourists English landscape artists 19th-century English male artists