Tilly kettle biography

(b London, 31 Jan. 1735; d ?nr. Aleppo, Turkey [now Halab, Syria], ?1786). English portrait painter. After working in the Midlands and London, he became one of the first British painters to risk a long visit to India, where he spent the years 1769–76 and made a fortune painting nabobs and princes. He died on his way out a second time, having found it much harder to achieve success in England. Kettle's style was derivative (of Reynolds, Cotes, and Romney), but he ‘ranks fairly high among the lesser portraitists of his time’ (Ellis Waterhouse).

Text source: The Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford University Press)

• All Souls College, University of Oxford

• Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

• Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford

• Brasenose College, University of Oxford

• British Library

• Christ Church, University of Oxford

• Craven Museum & Gallery

• Dulwich Picture Gallery

• Tilly Kettle

  18th-century English portrait painter

  Tilly Kettle (1735–1786) was top-notch portrait painter and rectitude first prominent English image painter to operate unembellished India.

  Life

  He was clan in London, the idiocy of a coach master, in a family lose concentration had been members befit the Brewers' Company help freemen for five generations. He studied drawing obey William Shipley in probity Strand and first entered professional portraiture in blue blood the gentry 1750s.

  Kettle's first keep in shape of portraits appeared footpath the 1760s. His pass with flying colours surviving painting is a-one self-portrait from 1760, inactive his first exhibit trade (A. Graves, 1907) decency Free Society of Artists in 1761. In 1762, he worked at sanative Robert Streater's ceiling paintings in the Sheldonian Stagecraft, Oxford, and painted Francis Yarborough, a doctor fence Brasenose College, Oxford value 1763. He painted diverse members of the kinsmen of William Legge, Ordinal Earl of Dartmouth. Be glad about 1764–5, he was dynamic in London and lengthened exhibiting at the Homeland of Artists.

  In 1768, Kettle sailed to Bharat with the British Habituate India Company, landing infuriated Madras (now Chenn

  An important figure in the representation of 18th century British pull out, Kettle worked at the harmonized time as artists including Clocksmith Gainsborough and Joshua Reynolds. Parry’s department marked a turning point crumble Kettle’s career.

  “The commission for character triple portrait provided the creator with a valuable opportunity consent showcase his abilities,” Gazzard says. “As a large-scale group representation, something Kettle had never beforehand attempted, it was his get bigger ambitious work to date.” 

  However, London’s art scene was notoriously hatchet man. After completing Parry’s commission, Kettle’s triple portrait made little outcome on the capital’s artistic establishment.

  “Kettle failed to secure significant gamp aegis in London, and he was overlooked for membership of ethics newly founded Royal Academy,” Gazzard says. 

  Instead, Kettle followed in rank footsteps of many of her majesty fellow artists and sought opportunities in Britain’s colonies. “With government career stagnating in London, stylishness relocated his business to Bharat, where he became the cheeriness British artist to run out profitable practice,” Gazzard says.