ART-HIST 110 1st Edition Lecture 8Eighteenth-Century British Colonial Art in North AmericaEighteenth-century British colonial art in North America developed out of European painting traditions. Its subjects frequently evoked – sometimes clearly, sometimes not so clearly -- the politics of European empires and global trade. However, 18th century colonial art in North America also marks the beginningsof the art of a new culture that will become the United States of America. Portraiture was the main formof painting in the British North American colonies of the 17th and 18th centuries. Portraits preserved likeness, conveyed status, and expressed the infant culture’s values. John Singleton Copley, who worked during the late 18th century, was the most skilled and successful artist of the colonial period. Copley left North America just before the American Revolution began; he faced the challenge of creating history paintings in London successfully, where he created multi-figured, thematically complex works. His Watson and the Shark (1778) is at once a portrait, an incident of commerce, and a heroic drama of salvation. In London, Copley followed the pioneering efforts of fellow colonist Benjamin West. West’s Death of General Wolfe (1770) was one of the first contemporary history paintings in the history of Western art and changed the course of western art history. Colonial American Art:29-1 John Singleton Copley, Thomas Mifflin and Sarah Morris (Mr. and Mrs. Mifflin), 177329-27 Benjamin West, The Death of General Wolfe, 177029-30 John Singleton Copley, Watson and the Shark, 1778Terms:history paintingGrand MannersublimeThese notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a
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