File:Self-Portrait_1769_John_Singleton_Copley.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
John Singleton Copley
Sign in to saveAlso known as John Singleton Copley, the Elder, R.A. Copley, J. S. Copley, Copley, R.A. J.S. Copley, R. A. J. S. Copley, R. A. Copley, J.S. Copley
American painter (1738-1815)
OverviewAI-generated
John Singleton Copley (1738–1815) was a British Empire citizen who worked as an artist, painter, and printmaker. Born in Boston and deceased in London, he worked in both cities. His artistic output included portrait and history painting, with notable works such as *Watson and the Shark*, *The Death of Major Peirson, 6 January 1781*, and *A Boy with a Flying Squirrel (Henry Pelham)*. He was the father of John Copley, 1st Baron Lyndhurst, and the sibling of Henry Pelham.
Copley was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Royal Academy of Arts, receiving the award of Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His works are held in collections including the Belvedere, Art Institute of Chicago, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum. He spoke English and was described in sources such as *Encyclopædia Britannica* 11th edition and *Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography*.
Synthesized by Vinony from 32 facts across 7 sources: Wikidata, Open Library, Crossref, MusicBrainz, Europeana Sparql, Vinony collections, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.
Key facts
- Born
- ( 1738-07-03 ) July 3, 1738, Boston , Province of Massachusetts Bay
- Died
- September 9, 1815 (1815-09-09) (aged 77), London , England , United Kingdom
- Education
- Peter Pelham
- Known for
- Portrait painting
- Notable work
- Watson and the Shark (1778)
- Spouse
- Susanna Clark
- Children
- John Copley, 1st Baron Lyndhurst
- Parent s
- Richard Copley and Mary Singleton Copley
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- human
- Gender
- male
- Citizenship
- British Empire
- Place of birth
- Boston
- Place of death
- London
- Sibling
- Henry Pelham
- Occupation
- printmaker
- Languages spoken
- English language
- Native language
- English language
- Field of work
- visual arts
- Genre
- history painting
- Movement
- realism
- Image
- Self portrait of John Singleton Copley.jpg
- Work location
- London
- Residence
- London
Show 12 more facts
- Commons category
- John Singleton Copley
- Commons Creator page
- John Singleton Copley
- member of
- Royal Academy of Arts
- name in native language
- John Singleton Copley
- date of birth
- 1738-07-03
- date of death
- 1815-09-09
- has works in the collection
- Memorial Art Gallery
- different from
- John Copley
- P12749
- hexadecimal
- place of burial
- London Borough of Croydon
- Commons gallery
- John Singleton Copley
- relative
- Gardiner Greene
via Wikidata · CC0
Works in European collections
18 objects attributed to John Singleton Copley, held across European museums, libraries & archives · via Europeana
~38 min read
Encyclopedic overview
John Singleton Copley /ˈkɑːpli/ RA (July 3, 1738 – September 9, 1815) was an American-born British painter active in both the Thirteen Colonies and England. He is believed to have been born in Boston, Province of Massachusetts Bay, to Richard and Mary Singleton Copley, both Anglo-Irish. After becoming well-established as a portrait painter of the wealthy in colonial New England, he moved to London in 1774, never returning to America. In London, he met considerable success as a portraitist for the next two decades, and also painted a number of large history paintings, which were innovative in their readiness to depict modern subjects and modern dress. His later years were less successful, and he died heavily in debt. He was father of John Copley, 1st Baron Lyndhurst and half-brother of Henry Pelham, the American painter, engraver, and cartographer.
Biography
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “John Singleton Copley” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.