The King's Painter: Art, History, and Benjamin West

Benjamin West was one of a group of painters who came to prominence in the American colonial period. Hugh Howard writes about these artist in his recent book The Painters Chair. The book is a fascinating glimpse into the emergence of artistic painting in America that chronicles the work of artists such as John Singleton Copley, Charles Wilson Peale, John Trumbull, and Gilbert Stuart. The story of Benjamin West's emergence as an artist in resident for King George III figures prominently in the book and is wonderful window into the complexities of the revolutionary period in the American colonies.

Benjamin West was born in Springfield, Pennsylvania. Following in the tradition of European painters in the mid 18th century, West took up portraiture. As one of the first successful portrait painters in the American colonies, West gained an audience and a means to support himself. In 1763, after a short stint polishing his craft in Italy (the first American painter to study in Italy) West moved to London. 1763 was a very important year for the British in North America. Likely the high point for the English in North America, 1763 marked the end of the Seven Years War (French and Indian War) resulting in the French ceding Canada to the British. As West moved east to London, more American colonist moved west into new lands now open and safe with the cessation of hostilities between colonist and native Americans. The ever expanding colonial presence on the western border would stoke the embers of a revolutionary spirit that would sweep across the North American continent just ten years later.

What does all this have to do with Benjamin West? Two of West's painting help fill in the story. In 1770, West painted what would become his most influential work, The Death of General Wolfe. The painting depicts an historical event in an authentic and distinctly different way. Instead of following the long established tradition of glorifying historical events and characters by painting them in the garb of classical antiquity, West depicted the characters in authentic clothing with authentic surroundings.


The Death of General Wolfe

Wolfe died in 1759 while leading the British invasion of Quebec City during the Seven Years War. His status as a British hero suggested a certain a classical treatment in any depiction of his death, but casting aside tradition West depicted General Wolfe and those around him in conditions that reflected the moment, an almost arch-classical rendering. The ironies of West's painting are important. King George III, despite his admiration of West as a portrait painter (West twice painted the King) initially rejected the The Death of General Wolfe after a copy was made for him by West in 1771. George III and other critics eventually came to accept West's new treatment. The King even appointed West historical painter to his court in 1772. Later, West would become the president of the prestigious Royal Academy for the Arts, an art institution founded by King George III in 1768.

Did West artistic sensibilities reflect the American condition? The colonists' physical detachment from the taste and artistic sensibilities of the 18th century European elite may have contributed to West's break from tradition. Perhaps West's upbringing as the tenth son of an innkeeper in the small Pennsylvania town of Springfield imbued a sense of realism in West's world view. Or, maybe it was just the experimental American attitude, removed from the conventions of European history, that emboldened West in his painting.