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Thomas Girtin ('Liber Naturae or A Collection of Prints From the Drawings of Thomas Girtin')

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Thomas Girtin ('Liber Naturae or A Collection of Prints From the Drawings of Thomas Girtin')

by Samuel William Reynolds, published by Neill & Son, published by Fine Art Society Ltd, after John Opie
mezzotint, published 1883 (circa 1800)
8 7/8 in. x 6 3/8 in. (226 mm x 163 mm) plate size; 19 7/8 in. x 13 1/2 in. (504 mm x 342 mm) paper size
acquired unknown source, 1961
Reference Collection
NPG D34509

Sitterback to top

  • Thomas Girtin (1775-1802), Watercolour painter. Sitter in 7 portraits, Artist associated with 1 portrait.

Artistsback to top

  • Fine Art Society Ltd, Publisher. Artist associated with 6 portraits.
  • Neill & Son (active 1852-1883), Booksellers. Artist associated with 1 portrait.
  • John Opie (1761-1807), Portrait and history painter. Artist associated with 148 portraits, Sitter in 13 portraits.
  • Samuel William Reynolds (1773-1835), Mezzotint engraver and painter. Artist associated with 629 portraits, Sitter in 3 portraits.

Related worksback to top

  • NPG 882: Thomas Girtin (source portrait)
  • NPG D2438: Thomas Girtin (based on same portrait)
  • NPG D2439: Thomas Girtin (based on same portrait)
  • NPG D34510: Thomas Girtin (based on same portrait)

Placesback to top

Subjects & Themesback to top

Events of 1883back to top

Current affairs

Following the Secret Ballot Act (1872), the Corrupt and Illegal Practices Act was a further measure introduced by Gladstone's government with the intention of limiting bribery and intimidation in elections. Candidates' expenses were published, and a strict limit set on expenses, and it also enabled poorer candidates to stand for parliament.

Art and science

The Royal College of Music founded in London, with the British musicologist George Grove as its first director.
Monet moves to Giverny, a village along the Seine, where he lives until his death in 1926. Renting a farmhouse he later buys, Monet designs a pond, redesigns the garden, and begins to paint some of his most recognisable images of water lilies, flower beds and the Japanese footbridge.

International

The Brooklyn Bridge opens in New York, connecting the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn, stretching 1825 metres over the East River. One of the oldest suspension bridges in America, it was the largest in the world upon completion. Designed by the John Augustus Roebling's engineering firm, the bridge is built from limestone, granite and Rosendale natural cement, in gothic style.

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