Anne Bradstreet
A master of Victorian classicism whose grand, meticulously painted scenes shaped Britain's visual imagination of antiquity.
1612–1672 (age 60)·Anglo-American poet·Birthday: March 20
Biography
Sir Edward John Poynter was the academician's academician, a painter who became the embodiment of the British art establishment in its most polished form. Eschewing the romantic turbulence of his contemporaries, Poynter dedicated himself to a cool, precise form of neo-classicism. His large-scale canvases, like 'Israel in Egypt' and 'The Visit of the Queen of Sheba', were archaeological fantasies, reconstructing the ancient world with a focus on exacting detail, marble textures, and carefully arranged figures. This scholarly approach propelled him to the pinnacle of the art world: he served as the first Slade Professor at University College London, Director of the National Gallery, and, for over two decades, President of the Royal Academy. While his style fell from favor with the rise of modernism, Poynter's influence was immense, defining official taste and educating a generation of artists in rigorous draftsmanship.
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Anne's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1612Born
1617Started school
1625Became a teenager
1628Could drive
1630Could vote
1633Turned 21
1642Turned 30
1652Turned 40
1662Turned 50
1672Turned 60
Key Achievements
- Served as President of the Royal Academy of Arts from 1896 to 1918, a record tenure.
- Appointed the first Slade Professor of Fine Art at University College London in 1871.
- Directed the National Gallery, London, overseeing its collection and expansion.
- Painted major public works, including the mosaic 'St George for England' in the Palace of Westminster.
- His designs for the 'Poynter Oilettes', decorative tiles for the Minton pottery company, were highly popular.
Did You Know?
He was the son of architect Ambrose Poynter and the great-uncle of novelist and poet Boris Pasternak.
Despite his classical subjects, he was an early advocate for painting outdoors, or *en plein air*.
He designed the reverse of the British 'Britannia' florin coin introduced in 1893.
Poynter married the famous beauty Agnes MacDonald, whose sister Georgiana married the artist Edward Burne-Jones.
He was a keen fisherman and wrote a book on the subject titled 'Notes on Salmon Fishing'.
“If ever two were one, then surely we.”
