Thomas Gainsborough was an English portrait and landscape painter, draughtsman, and printmaker. Along with his rival Sir Joshua Reynolds, he is considered one of the most important British artists of the second half of the 18th century. He painted quickly, and the works of his maturity are characterised by a light palette and easy strokes. Despite being a prolific portrait painter, Gainsborough gained greater satisfaction from his landscapes. He is credited as the originator of the 18th-century British landscape school. Gainsborough was a founding member of the Royal Academy.
John Crome, once known as Old Crome to distinguish him from his artist son John Berney Crome, was an English landscape painter of the Romantic era, one of the principal artists and founding members of the Norwich School of painters. He lived in the English city of Norwich for all his life. Most of his works are of Norfolk landscapes.
Sir John Everett Millais, 1st Baronet was an English painter and illustrator who was one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. He was a child prodigy who, aged eleven, became the youngest student to enter the Royal Academy Schools. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood was founded at his family home in London, at 83 Gower Street. Millais became the most famous exponent of the style, his painting Christ in the House of His Parents (1849–50) generating considerable controversy, and he produced a picture that could serve as the embodiment of the historical and naturalist focus of the group, Ophelia, in 1851–52.
John Constable was an English landscape painter in the Romantic tradition. Born in Suffolk, he is known principally for revolutionising the genre of landscape painting with his pictures of Dedham Vale, the area surrounding his home – now known as "Constable Country" – which he invested with an intensity of affection. "I should paint my own places best", he wrote to his friend John Fisher in 1821, "painting is but another word for feeling".
Richard Wilson was an influential Welsh landscape painter, who worked in Britain and Italy. With George Lambert he is recognised as a pioneer in British art of landscape for its own sake and was described in the Welsh Academy Encyclopedia of Wales as the "most distinguished painter Wales has ever produced and the first to appreciate the aesthetic possibilities of his country". In December 1768 Wilson became one of the founder-members of the Royal Academy. A catalogue raisonné of the artist's work compiled by Paul Spencer-Longhurst is published by the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art.
George Stubbs was an English painter, best known for his paintings of horses. Self-trained, Stubbs learnt his skills independently from other great artists of the 18th century such as Reynolds and Gainsborough. Stubbs' output includes history paintings, but his greatest skill was in painting animals, perhaps influenced by his love and study of anatomy. His series of paintings on the theme of a lion attacking a horse are early and significant examples of the Romantic movement that emerged in the late 18th century. He enjoyed royal patronage. His painting Whistlejacket hangs in the National Gallery, London.
Paul Nash was a British surrealist painter and war artist, as well as a photographer, writer and designer of applied art. Nash was among the most important landscape artists of the first half of the twentieth century. He played a key role in the development of Modernism in English art.
James Ward was an English painter, particularly of animals, and an engraver.
Frederick Richard Lee was an English artist.
Philip Wilson Steer was a British painter of landscapes, seascapes plus portraits and figure studies. He was also an influential art teacher. His sea and landscape paintings made him a leading figure in the Impressionist movement in Britain but in time he turned to a more traditional English style, clearly influenced by both John Constable and J. M. W. Turner, and spent more time painting in the countryside rather than on the coast. As a painting tutor at the Slade School of Art for many years he influenced generations of young artists.
Charles Theodosius Heath was a British engraver, currency and stamp printer, book publisher and illustrator.
Musidora: The Bather 'At the Doubtful Breeze Alarmed', also known as The Bather, is a name given to four nearly identical oil paintings on canvas by English artist William Etty. The paintings illustrate a scene from James Thomson's 1727 poem Summer in which a young man accidentally sees a young woman bathing naked and is torn between his desire to look and his knowledge that he ought to look away. The scene was popular with English artists as it was one of the few legitimate pretexts to paint nudes at a time when the display and distribution of nude imagery was suppressed.
A View of Walton Bridge is a 1754 landscape painting by the Italian artist Canaletto depicting the construction of a new bridge at Walton, Surrey on the Thames southwest of London, now known as Old Walton Bridge.
Flatford Mill is an 1817 landscape painting by the British artist John Constable. It depicts a view of Flatford Mill in East Bergholt on the River Stour. It is also known by the subtitle Scene on a Navigable River.
The Grove, Hampstead is an 1822 landscape painting by the British artist John Constable. It depicts a scene in Hampstead then a rural settlement on the northern outskirts of London. The main focus is The Grove, a building now known as the Admiral's House. The building features in a number of Constable's Hampstead paintings. He lived in the area and produced many views of the Heath and landmarks.
The Pont des Arts, Paris is an 1826 cityscape painting by the British artist Richard Parkes Bonington. It depicts a scene in Paris during the Restoration era. The Pont des Arts across the River Seine, built during the Napoleonic era, forms the centre of the veduta.
A Distant View of St-Omer is a c.1824 landscape painting by the British artist Richard Parkes Bonington. Bonington moved to France when he was fourteen and became known for his views of the French countryside and coasts. This painting depicts the town of Saint-Omer on River Aa in Picardy from a distance. A rural scene, the skyline of Saint-Omer and its taller, church buildings is dominated by the clouds and the near countryside.
Hampstead Heath with a Rainbow is an 1836 landscape painting by the English artist John Constable. It depicts a scene from Branch Hill in Hampstead overlooking Hampstead Heath.
Kew Gardens: The Pagoda and Bridge is a 1762 landscape painting by the Welsh artist Richard Wilson. It depicts a view of Kew Gardens, then the grounds of the royal palace. It shows the newly constructed Great Pagoda, designed by the architect William Chambers. Both this and another work depicting Kew The Ruined Arch reflect Wilson's travels in Italy, and attempt to Italianise the scene. Chambers hoped these paintings would help his friend Wilson gain attention from the young George III, but the latter preferred more factually topographical depictions rather than Wilson's more impressionistic style.
The Cock Tavern at Cheam is a c.1745 landscape painting by the Welsh artist Richard Wilson. It likely depicts the Cock Inn, a tavern located on Cheam Common in Sutton in Surrey, then a number of miles outside London. It was a well-known coaching inn on the road from the capital to Brighton. Two men sit outside at a table drinking ale, while in the background is uncultivated common land with grazing sheep.
