Sir William Chambers

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Sir William Chambers

by Jeremiah Meyer
watercolour and bodycolour on ivory, after 1770
1 5/8 in. x 1 1/4 in. (41 mm x 32 mm) oval
Bequeathed by Eugenie F.E. Pebardy, 1958
Primary Collection
NPG 4044

Sitterback to top

Artistback to top

  • Jeremiah Meyer (1735-1789), Miniature painter. Artist or producer associated with 8 portraits, Sitter in 6 portraits.

Linked publicationsback to top

  • Ingamells, John, National Portrait Gallery: Mid-Georgian Portraits 1760-1790, 2004, p. 98
  • Rogers, Malcolm, Master Drawings from the National Portrait Gallery, 1993 (accompanying the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery from 5 August to 23 October 1994), p. 51
  • Saywell, David; Simon, Jacob, Complete Illustrated Catalogue, 2004, p. 113
  • Walker, Richard, Miniatures: 300 Years of the English Miniature, 1998, p. 69 Read entry

    The two miniatures by Jeremiah Meyer, in transparent watercolour on ivory, show this distinguished artist at his best. His characteristics are clearly apparent: the shrewd appraisal of his sitter's personality achieved by easily recognisable mannerisms, angular draughtmanship, linear modelling and protruding sculptured lips; the colours are less faded than is usual with Meyer miniatures. The architect Chambers is shown as a serious, rather stodgy-looking character, probably a fairly accurate assessment. He was the architect responsible for the lay-out of Kew gardens, the design of the Royal State Coach (still in use), and of Somerset House on the banks of the Thames, his masterpiece. He wears the Swedish Order of the Polar Star.

Subject/Themeback to top

Events of 1770back to top

Current affairs

Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton resigns as Prime Minister and is succeeded by Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford.

Art and science

Oliver Goldsmith publishes his poem The Deserted Village.
Philosopher and politician Edmund Burke publishes Thoughts on the Cause of the Present Discontents discussing the limits of the King's authority.
17-year-old Thomas Chatterton, later hailed as a significant poet, commits suicide in a London garret.
Thomas Gainsborough paints his portrait of Jonathan Buttall, which later becomes known as The Blue Boy.

International

'Townshend duties' on imports into the colonies are repealed, except for the duty on tea. However, this concession is soon followed by the Boston Massacre, in which British troops fire into an unruly crowd in Boston, killing five.
Captain Cook reaches the eastern coast of Australia, at a place which he names Botany Bay. He discovers the Great Barrier Reef when HMS Endeavour runs onto it. Cook claims New South Wales for the British.

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