George Théodore Berthon | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Born | 3 May 1806 Royal Palace of Vienna |
Died | 18 January 1892 (aged 85) |
Nationality | Austrian-born French |
Education | Paris, France. He likely was trained by his father who is said to have been a student of Jacques Louis David |
Known for | Canadian portrait artist |
George Théodore Berthon RCA (3 May 1806 – 18 January 1892) was a Canadian portrait painter. Born in Vienna to a well-known French portrait painter, René Théodore Berthon, he emigrated first to Great Britain, and then to Canada, sometime before 1845. He specialised in portraiture of high-ranking British and Canadian officials, developing a sense of realism and simplicity. He died in Toronto in 1892.
Berthon's father, René Théodore Berthon, was a court painter to Napoleon I, and likely trained his son in art. As well, his knowledge of art in Paris would have been significant: his father was a student of Jacques Louis David. [1] As an adult, he lived in England for a number of years in the household of Sir Robert Peel to teach Peel's daughters drawing and French. [2] The first verifiable record of his immigration to Canada is an advertisement for his portraiture services in a Toronto newspaper in 1845.
Berthon was notable in the history of Canada for his creation of formal portraits characterized by a sense of realism. He focused on defining his subjects' features and characters without idealization. The composition of his portraits remains simple with dark backgrounds. His work is important both as a historical record and as an example of the style of Canadian portraiture during that period.
He was nominated as a founding member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts [3] but failed to qualify. [2] He was elected a life member of the Ontario Society of Artists in 1891. [2]
He died of a bronchial infection, at his Toronto home, in 1892. [1]
George Théodore Berthon | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Born | 3 May 1806 Royal Palace of Vienna |
Died | 18 January 1892 (aged 85) |
Nationality | Austrian-born French |
Education | Paris, France. He likely was trained by his father who is said to have been a student of Jacques Louis David |
Known for | Canadian portrait artist |
George Théodore Berthon RCA (3 May 1806 – 18 January 1892) was a Canadian portrait painter. Born in Vienna to a well-known French portrait painter, René Théodore Berthon, he emigrated first to Great Britain, and then to Canada, sometime before 1845. He specialised in portraiture of high-ranking British and Canadian officials, developing a sense of realism and simplicity. He died in Toronto in 1892.
Berthon's father, René Théodore Berthon, was a court painter to Napoleon I, and likely trained his son in art. As well, his knowledge of art in Paris would have been significant: his father was a student of Jacques Louis David. [1] As an adult, he lived in England for a number of years in the household of Sir Robert Peel to teach Peel's daughters drawing and French. [2] The first verifiable record of his immigration to Canada is an advertisement for his portraiture services in a Toronto newspaper in 1845.
Berthon was notable in the history of Canada for his creation of formal portraits characterized by a sense of realism. He focused on defining his subjects' features and characters without idealization. The composition of his portraits remains simple with dark backgrounds. His work is important both as a historical record and as an example of the style of Canadian portraiture during that period.
He was nominated as a founding member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts [3] but failed to qualify. [2] He was elected a life member of the Ontario Society of Artists in 1891. [2]
He died of a bronchial infection, at his Toronto home, in 1892. [1]