Samuel Shelley (1750/56–1808) was an English miniaturist and watercolour painter. Largely self-educated, Samuel Shelley was a leading miniaturist, i.e., painter of

portrait miniature A portrait miniature is a miniature portrait painting, usually executed in gouache, Watercolor painting, watercolor, or Vitreous enamel, enamel. Portrait miniatures developed out of the techniques of the miniatures in illuminated manuscripts, an ...

s, of his time, ranking with Cosway,

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, and

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. In addition to his portraits, he also painted in water-colours fancy figures and compositions from Shakespeare, Tasso, and other poets. His water-colours and miniatures were engraved by Bartolozzi, William Nutter, Caroline Watson, and others.

Life

Born in

Whitechapel Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed a c ...

, London, Shelley was for the most part self-taught as an artist. His first exhibition was at the Society of Artists in 1773, on 21 March the following year he entered the Royal Academy Schools (his age recorded as 17), where he became influenced by the work of Sir Joshua Reynolds. During his career Shelley painted in oil, illustrated books, and engraved several of his own works, but he's most particularly remembered for his watercolour miniature portraits. During his lifetime he exhibited at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its purp ...

, the Society of Artists and the

British Institute The British Institution (in full, the British Institution for Promoting the Fine Arts in the United Kingdom; founded 1805, disbanded 1867) was a private 19th-century society in London formed to exhibit the works of living and dead artists; it w ...

. In 1804 Shelley joined with W. F. Wells, Robert Hills,

W. H. Pyne William Henry Pyne (1769 in London – 29 May 1843 in London) was an English writer, illustrator and painter, who also wrote under the name of Ephraim Hardcastle. He trained at the drawing academy of Henry Pars in London. He first exhibite ...

, and six other artists to found the

Watercolour Society Watercolor (American English) or watercolour ( British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back t ...

(afterwards known as the "Old" society), of which he was treasurer until 1807. Shelley also taught painting, Edward Nash (miniaturist) and Alexander Robertson being two of his pupils.

References

18th-century English painters English male painters 19th-century English painters 1750 births 1808 deaths English watercolourists Portrait miniaturists 19th-century English male artists 18th-century English male artists {{England-painter-stub