Meet John Singleton Copley

Self portrait

John Singleton Copley (1738-1815) was a portrait and history painter born and trained in North America. Copley was known for being hardworking and for his attention to detail. In 1774 after a short European tour, he moved to London, England, and like Benjamin West, never returned to North America. In fact, in the 1760s West and Copley wrote letters back and forth. Copley sent West several of his portraits and West arranged for them to be exhibited in London, thus helping Copley become known in the English art world.

Copley and his family were Loyalist sympathizers at the time of the American Revolution, so he and his family found it easier to move to London, and he could continue his artwork there. However, he did keep many friendships with those in North America that lasted past the war. In England he and West worked together making history paintings. Because many of his paintings in later life didn't sell, and because he continued to spend money to support the family's lifestyle, he had a lot of debt when he died. One of his sons was able to take care of these debts and to maintain the remaining household.

You should have 3 works of art by this artist to display this week.

We've got two videos to start out our week with this artist.

The first discusses Copley's place in American history, and focuses on his portraiture. It's well-done and engaging. I like the reminder that these are "primary sources," which is another way of saying what I like to say, which is, "Art IS history."

The second video is a reading of a children's biography about Copley. There's nothing interesting to watch on the video, but your kids might enjoy listening while they draw or have a snack.