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barn at Maidstone, August 15, 1735. His family came originally from Holland; his father was a watchmaker. He began to draw when quite young, and his friends at Maidstone subscribed to apprentice him to Tinney, an engraver; and of some of his works during his apprenticeship he was both designer and engraver. He was a member of the St. Martin's Lane Academy, aud early distinguished himself. His art was his constant study, his aim to produce a fine work rather than to seek commercial success. He was employed by Alderman Boy dell, and his ' Niobe/ after Wilson, R. A., and * Death of General Wolfe' after West, P.R.A.J were the first English engravings that gained notice on the Continent, while Hogarth's were not understood out of Eng- land. For thejformer of these he received 1501. (the original agreement was 100/.), and the prints were originally sold for os. each. A fine proof has since been sold for 50/. His * Battle of La Hogue' is one of his finest works; but he succeeded no less in landscape, excelling in all the varying manners of sky, foliage, and foreground, and especially in the tender transparency of water, when seen in motion.
In 1766 he was a member of the Incor- porated Society of Artists, and for several years secretary to the Society. He held the appointment of engraver to the king. His works embraced a wide field of subject. His manner, uniting the needle with the graver, was rich and varied in execution and pecu- liarly his own. He gave every variety of texture, particularly the delicate softness of flesh in the most perfect manner. His works gave a high character to the English schooL He lived many years in Green Street, Leicester Fields, and then removed to Charlotte Street, Rathbone Place, where he was wont to celebrate the completion of a plate, by firing a cannon from the roof of his house. He died in Upper Brook Street, Rathbone Place, May 23, 1785, from the effects of a neglected injury received while playing at Dutch pins several years before. He was buried in the churchyard of St. Pau- cras-in-the-Fields, and his friends placed a tablet to his memory in the cloisters of Westminster Abbey. His widow and two daughters were left in such narrow circum- stances, that in 1814 a subscription was raised for them, and in 1843 his daughter, then 73 years eld, was a candidate for a
Pension from the National Benevolent nstitution.
WOOLNOTH, Thomas, engraver. Born in 1785. He engraved many theatrical portraits, ' The Infant Saviour ' after Cor- reggio, and the portrait of Gevartius after Vandyck. He was living in 1836.
WOOTTON, John, animal painter. Was a pupil of John Wyck. He first made himself known at Newmarket, where he
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drew the favourite racehorses, and became distinguished as a painter of horses and dogs, receiving large prices for his works. Later he tried landscape, and introduced hunting scenes. His works, usually on a large scale, decorate the halls of several old mansions, Longleat, Dytchley, Althorp, Blenheim, with some in the royal collection. His sight failing, he sold his collections of drawings and paintings in 1761, and died in January 1765, at a house in Cavendish Square, which he had built and decorated with his paintings. His horses are painted with great spirit and truth, his landscapes are coarse in manner, but his art is associ- ated with many English recollections. He designed several illustrations, which have much humour, for the first edition of Gay's ' Fables,' published 1727. • WORLIDGE, Thomas, portrait painter and etcher. Born in 1700. He practised in the reign of George II. and first painted at Bath, drawing with pencil on vellum or in Indian ink, portraits of a miniature size. He afterwards tried portraits in oil, and then removed to London, but not succeeding he applied himself to drawing and etching. He was a good draftsman, ana etching with much ability in the manner of Rembrandt, was tolerably successful. He drew ana etched a large plate of the Oxford Com- memoration, 1761, full of figures, some of them portraits, freely but slightly etched, yet not wanting in drawing or spirit. After his death in 1768, a selection of his draw- ings from antique gems was published, comprising 182 plates, a work by which he is best known. He also etched many heads, and was distinguished by his use of dry point. His style was designated as the scritch scratch manner. In 1766 he exhi- bited whole-length and three-quarters por- traits with the Free Society. He married a young wife, the daughter of a toy-man at Bath. She was gifted with great beauty, and able to assist him in his art, and became celebrated by her skill in worsted work. He appears to have been one of those who 'take no care for the morrow.' We are told that when in want of a dinner in his early days, he luckily found half a guinea, ana then instead of disposing of it for some beef steaks and a pair of shoes, as his wife wished, he chose a feast of some earty green peas. Later in life, when his etchings had become fashionable and he was better off, he resided chiefly at Bath, but he died September 23. 1766, at Ham- mersmith, was buried in the church there, where a tablet is erected to his memory.
WORNUM, Ralph Nicholson, artist and writer upon art. Was born at Thorn- ton, near Durham, in 1812. Hj was origin- ally intended for the bar, but in 1834 turned to art as a profession, and studied for five years in Munich, Dresden, Rome, and Paris,
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