Joseph Highmore of Holborn Row [first edition]

The first full length biography of this important 18th century British portrait painter, Dissenter, and writer. The young Joseph apprenticed in law but longed to be an artist. He went to Sir Godfrey Kneller's school to learn to paint. The family's success and failure in the coal and woodmongering business forms a backdrop to Joseph's chosen career. He also made his own mark by dissenting from the Anglican Church, and, with his brother Nathaniel, lived the life of a Christian Freethinker. Highmore was commissioned to paint the portraits of the leading citizens of his day, and he distinguished himself by producing conversation pieces, including a series of twelve scenes from Richardson's Pamela. Highmore enjoyed his family life. He and his wife raised two interesting and accomplished children. Their daughter, a poet and woman of letters, appears on the frontispiece of this book. In retirement, the painter sold his house and all the paintings in his studio, and lived out his days with his daughter and her husband in Canterbury as a writer.