Regency Personalities Series-Royal Academy of Arts

Regency Personalities Series

In my attempts to provide us with the details of the Regency, today I continue with one of the many period notables.

Royal Academy of Arts

1768- to Present

Royal Academy of Arts

Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. It has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects; its purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and appreciation of the visual arts through exhibitions, education and debate.

The Royal Academy of Arts was founded through a personal act of King George III on 10 December 1768 with a mission to promote the arts of design in Britain through education and exhibition. The motive in founding the Academy was twofold: to raise the professional status of the artist by establishing a sound system of training and expert judgement in the arts, and to arrange the exhibition of contemporary works of art attaining an appropriate standard of excellence. Supporters wanted to foster a national school of art and to encourage appreciation and interest in the public based on recognised canons of good taste.

Fashionable taste in 18th-century Britain was based on continental and traditional art forms, providing contemporary British artists little opportunity to sell their works. From 1746 the Foundling Hospital, through the efforts of William Hogarth, provided an early venue for contemporary artists in Britain. The success of this venture led to the formation of the Society of Artists of Great Britain and the Free Society of Artists. Both these groups were primarily exhibiting societies; their initial success was marred by internal factions among the artists. The combined vision of education and exhibition to establish a national school of art set the Royal Academy apart from the other exhibiting societies. It provided the foundation upon which the Royal Academy came to dominate the art scene of the 18th and 19th centuries, supplanting the earlier art societies.

Sir William Chambers, a prominent architect, used his connections with George III to gain royal patronage and financial support of the Academy, and it was founded in 1768. The painter Joshua Reynolds was made its first president. Francis Milner Newton was elected the first secretary, a post he held for two decades until his resignation in 1788.

The instrument of foundation, signed by George III on 10 December 1768, named 34 founder members and allowed for a total membership of 40. The founder members were Reynolds, John Baker, George Barret, Francesco Bartolozzi, Giovanni Battista Cipriani, Augustino Carlini, Charles Catton, Mason Chamberlin, William Chambers, Francis Cotes, George Dance, Nathaniel Dance, Thomas Gainsborough, John Gwynn, Francis Hayman, Nathaniel Hone the Elder, Angelica Kauffman, Jeremiah Meyer, George Michael Moser, Francis Milner Newton, Mary Moser, Edward Penny, John Inigo Richards, Thomas Sandby, Paul Sandby, Dominic Serres, Peter Toms, William Tyler, Samuel Wale, Benjamin West, Richard Wilson, Joseph Wilton, Richard Yeo, Francesco Zuccarelli. William Hoare and Johann Zoffany were added to this list later by the King and are known as nominated members. Among the founder members were two women, a father and daughter, and two sets of brothers.

The Royal Academy was initially housed in cramped quarters in Pall Mall, although in 1771 it was given temporary accommodation for its library and schools in Old Somerset House, then a royal palace. In 1780 it was installed in purpose-built apartments in the first completed wing of New Somerset House, located in the Strand and designed by Chambers, the Academy’s first treasurer. The Academy moved in 1837 to Trafalgar Square, where it occupied the east wing of the recently completed National Gallery (designed by another Academician, William Wilkins). These premises soon proved too small to house both institutions. In 1868, 100 years after the Academy’s foundation, it moved to Burlington House, Piccadilly, where it remains. Burlington House is owned by the British Government, and used rent-free by the Royal Academy.

The first Royal Academy exhibition of contemporary art, open to all artists, opened on 25 April 1769 and ran until 27 May 1769. 136 works of art were shown and this exhibition, now known as the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, has been staged annually without interruption to the present day. In 1870 the Academy expanded its exhibition programme to include a temporary annual loan exhibition of Old Masters, following the cessation of a similar annual exhibition at the British Institution. The range and frequency of these loan exhibitions have grown enormously since that time, making the Royal Academy a leading art exhibition institution of international importance.

Britain’s first public lectures on art were staged by the Royal Academy, as another way to fulfil its mission. Led by Reynolds, the first president, a program included lectures by Dr. William Hunter, John Flaxman, James Barry, Sir John Soane, and J. M. W. Turner. The last three were all graduates of the RA School, which for a long time was the only established art school in the country.

The Royal Academy does not receive financial support from the state or the Crown. Its income is from exhibitions, trust and endowment funds, receipts from its trading activities, and from the subscriptions of its Friends and corporate members. It also gains funds by sponsorship from commercial and industrial companies, in which the Academy was one of the pioneers.

The Royal Academy Schools was the first institution to provide professional training for artists in Britain. The Schools’ programme of formal training was modelled on that of the French Académie de peinture et de sculpture, founded by Louis XIV in 1648. It was shaped by the precepts laid down by Sir Joshua Reynolds. In his fifteen Discourses delivered to pupils in the Schools between 1769 and 1790, Reynolds stressed the importance of copying the Old Masters, and of drawing from casts after the Antique and from the life model. He argued that such a training would form artists capable of creating works of high moral and artistic worth. Professorial chairs were founded in Chemistry, Anatomy, Ancient History and Ancient Literature, the latter two being held initially by Samuel Johnson and Oliver Goldsmith.

In 1769, the first year of operation, the Schools enrolled 77 students. By 1830 over 1,500 students had enrolled in the Schools, giving an average intake of 25 students each year. They included men such as John Flaxman, J. M. W. Turner, John Soane, Thomas Rowlandson, William Blake, Thomas Lawrence, John Constable, George Hayter, David Wilkie, William Etty and Edwin Landseer. The term of studentship was at first six years. This was increased to seven years in 1792 and to ten in 1800.

The Royal Academy has an important collection of books, archives and works of art accessible for research and display. A large part of these collections have been digitised and can be investigated through the Collection website.

The first president of the Royal Academy, Sir Joshua Reynolds, gave his noted self-portrait, beginning the Royal Academy collection. This was followed by gifts from other founding members, such as Gainsborough and Benjamin West. Subsequently each elected Member was required to donate an artwork (known as a “Diploma Work”) typical of his or her artistic output, and this practice continues today. Additional donations and purchases have resulted in a collection of approximately a thousand paintings and a thousand sculptures, which show the development of a British School of art.

Membership of the Royal Academy is composed of practising artists, each elected by ballot of the General Assembly of the Royal Academy, and known individually as Royal Academicians (RA, or more traditionally as R.A.). The Royal Academy is governed by these Royal Academicians. The 1768 Instrument of Foundation allowed total membership of the Royal Academy to be 40 artists. The category of Associate Member of the Royal Academy (ARA, traditionally as A.R.A.) was introduced in 1769 to provide a means of preselecting suitable candidates to fill future vacancies among Academicians.[citation needed] Originally engravers were completely excluded from the academy, but at the beginning of 1769 the category of Associate-Engraver was created. Their number was limited to six, and unlike other associates, they could not be promoted to full academicians,[15] In 1853 membership of the Academy was increased to 42.

President


Served




Joshua Reynolds
1768–1792


Benjamin West
1792–1805


James Wyatt
1805–1806


Benjamin West
1806–1820


Thomas Lawrence
1820–1830


Martin Archer Shee
1830–1850






Keeper


Served




George Michael Moser, RA
10 Dec 1768 – 24 Jan 1783


Agostino Carlini, RA
3 Mar 1783 – 24 Sep 1790


Joseph Wilton, RA
24 Sep 1790 – 25 Nov 1803


Henry Fuseli, RA
24 Dec 1804 – 16 Apr 1825


Henry Thomson, RA
9 Jun 1825 – 10 Dec 1827


William Hilton, RA
10 Dec 1827 – 30 Dec 1839






Treasurer


Served




William Chambers
10 Dec 1768 – 8 Mar 1796


John Yenn
2 Apr 1796 – 8 Jun 1820


Robert Smirke
8 Jun 1820 – 18 Jul 1850






Secretary


Served




Francis Milner Newton, RA
10 Dec 1768 – 10 Dec 1788


John Inigo Richards, RA
10 Dec 1788 – 2 Mar 1810


Henry Howard, RA
11 Feb 1811 – 20 Jan 1847






Name


Elected


Notes




John Baker
1768
Foundation member


George Barret
1768
Foundation member


Francesco Bartolozzi
1768
Foundation member


Agostino Carlini
1768
Foundation member


Charles Catton
1768
Foundation member


Mason Chamberlin
1768
Foundation member


William Chambers
1768
Foundation member


Giovanni Battista Cipriani
1768
Foundation member


Francis Cotes
1768
Foundation member


George Dance the Younger
1768
Foundation member; Professor of Architecture 1798–1805


Nathaniel Dance-Holland
1768
Foundation member


Thomas Gainsborough
1768
Foundation member


John Gwynn
1768
Foundation member


Francis Hayman
1768
Foundation member; first Academy librarian


Nathaniel Hone
1768
Foundation member


Angelica Kauffman
1768
Foundation member


Jeremiah Meyer
1768
Foundation member


George Michael Moser
1768
Foundation member; first Keeper


Mary Moser
1768
Foundation member


Francis Milner Newton
1768
Foundation member; first Secretary


Edward Penny
1768
Foundation member


Joshua Reynolds
1768
Foundation member; President 1768–1792


John Inigo Richards
1768
Foundation member; Secretary 1788–1810


Paul Sandby
1768
Foundation member


Thomas Sandby
1768
Foundation member; first Professor of Architecture


Dominic Serres
1768
Foundation member; Librarian 1792–1793


Peter Toms
1768
Foundation member


William Tyler
1768
Foundation member


Samuel Wale
1768
Foundation member


Benjamin West
1768
Foundation member; President 1792–1805, 1806–1820


Richard Wilson
1768
Foundation member


Joseph Wilton
1768
Foundation member; third Keeper


Richard Yeo
1768
Foundation member


Francesco Zuccarelli
1768
Foundation member


William Hoare
1769
Nominated member


Johann Zoffany
1769
Nominated member


Richard Cosway
1771


Joseph Nollekens
1772


Philip James de Loutherbourg
1781


George Stubbs
1781


Joseph Wright
1784


Thomas Banks
1785


James Wyatt
1785
President 1805


James Northcote
1787


John Opie
1788


John Russell
1788


Henry Fuseli
1790
Professor of Painting 1799–1803, 1810–1824; Keeper 1803–1810?


Ozias Humphrey
1791


John Yenn
1791


Robert Smirke
1793


Thomas Lawrence
1794
President 1820–1830


Richard Westall
1794


Thomas Stothard
1794


John Hoppner
1795


William Beechey
1798
Associate RA: 1793


Henry Tresham
1799
Professor of Painting 1807–1809


John Flaxman
1800
Professor of Sculpture 1810–1826


Martin Archer Shee
1800
President 1830–1850


John Soane
1802
Professor of Architecture 1806–1837


J. M. W. Turner
1802


Thomas Phillips
1808
Professor of Painting 1824–1832


James Ward
1811


David Wilkie
1811


Richard Westmacott
1811
Professor of Sculpture 1827–1856


Robert Smirke
1811


Philip Reinagle
1812


William Theed
1813


George Dawe
1814


John Jackson
1817


Edward Hodges Baily
1821


Jeffry Wyatville
1824


William Wilkins
1826
Professor of Architecture 1837–1839


Charles Lock Eastlake
1827
President 1850–1865


William Etty
1828


John Constable
1829


Edwin Henry Landseer
1831


Clarkson Stanfield
1835


Charles Robert Cockerell
1836
Professor of Architecture 1839–1856


John Peter Gandy
1838


Frederick Richard Lee
1838