Portrait painter, Genre Painter, Landscape painter, b. 1747 - d. 1801
Artist Francis Wheatley (1747-1801) is best known for his paintings that show the bustling crowds of London. Francis Wheatley's earlier paintings of women in bright clothing posed against dark backgrounds were also popular and sold fast. Aside from his paintings, he undertook illustrations for clothing designers, bringing a realistic quality to the materials. Despite his talent, he was deeply in debt, so he escaped to Dublin with the wife of a friend to avoid paying his creditors.
After returning to London, he focused more on conversation pieces and landscapes of popular areas in England. Francis Wheatley prints and paintings primarily belong to the sentimental genre, showing details in expressions and places to convey feeling. You can view other landscape paintings for sale online at Invaluable to find your next great work of art.
Francis Wheatley (British, 1747-1801). Hand-colored stipple engraving on paper, Plate 6 from the Cries of London series, titled Knives, Scissors and Razors to Grind / Couteaux, Ciseaux, Rasoirs a repasser. Engraved by Giovanni Vendramini (Italian/British, 1769-1839). The composition illustrates a traveling knife grinder operating a foot-treadle wheel on a cobblestone street while attending to two women in late 18th-century attire. Lower margin inscriptions include Painted by F. Wheatley R.A. at left and Engraved by G. Vendramini at right. Centrally inscribed CRIES of LONDON Plate 6th above the dual-language title. Publication line reads London Pubd as the Act Directs Jan 1 1795 by Colnaghi and Co. No 132 Pall Mall. Housed in a gilt wood frame with a double-lined cream mat. Frame size: 19.25"W x 25.25"H Sight size: 12"W x 16"H Dimensions: 33"W x 25.25"H Weight: 6.4 lb.
(1747 London - 1801 ebend.) attr. Das Geständnis der Jenny Jones Das runde Gemälde stellt eine Szene aus Henry Fieldings Bildungsroman "The History of Tom Jones" dar, der 1749 erschien und seit langem zur Weltliteratur zählt. Dargestellt ist vermutlich der Moment, indem sich das Dienstmädchen Jenny Jones zu der Mutterschaft des Findelkinds Tom Jones gegenüber dem Gutsherrn Allworthy und seiner Schwester bekennt. Vermutlich gab es weitere Tondi mit Motiven aus dem Leben des Tom Jones. Stilistisch steht einer Zuschreibung an Francis Wheatley wenig entgegen, der auch andere Novels ähnlich illustrierte. Öl/Lwd. dubl.; D. 38 cm. Auf einem alten Klebezettel verso, ist eine Zusammenfassung der Handlung zu lesen. Rahmen. Attributed to Francis Wheatley (1747 - 1801). Oil on canvas.
Francis Wheatley (British, 1747-1801). Hand-colored stipple engraving on paper, Plate 6 from the Cries of London series, titled Knives, Scissors and Razors to Grind / Couteaux, Ciseaux, Rasoirs a repasser. Engraved by Giovanni Vendramini (Italian/British, 1769-1839). The composition illustrates a traveling knife grinder operating a foot-treadle wheel on a cobblestone street while attending to two women in late 18th-century attire. Lower margin inscriptions include Painted by F. Wheatley R.A. at left and Engraved by G. Vendramini at right. Centrally inscribed CRIES of LONDON Plate 6th above the dual-language title. Publication line reads London Pubd as the Act Directs Jan 1 1795 by Colnaghi and Co. No 132 Pall Mall. Housed in a gilt wood frame with a double-lined cream mat. Frame size: 19.25"W x 25.25"H Sight size: 12"W x 16"H Dimensions: 33"W x 25.25"H Weight: 6.4 lb.
Francis Wheatley (British, 1747-1801). Hand-colored stipple engraving on paper, Plate 6 from the Cries of London series, titled Knives, Scissors and Razors to Grind / Couteaux, Ciseaux, Rasoirs a repasser. Engraved by Giovanni Vendramini (Italian/British, 1769-1839). The composition illustrates a traveling knife grinder operating a foot-treadle wheel on a cobblestone street while attending to two women in late 18th-century attire. Lower margin inscriptions include Painted by F. Wheatley R.A. at left and Engraved by G. Vendramini at right. Centrally inscribed CRIES of LONDON Plate 6th above the dual-language title. Publication line reads London Pubd as the Act Directs Jan 1 1795 by Colnaghi and Co. No 132 Pall Mall. Housed in a gilt wood frame with a double-lined cream mat. Frame size: 19.25"W x 25.25"H Sight size: 12"W x 16"H Dimensions: 33"W x 25.25"H Weight: 6.4 lb.
FRANCIS WHEATLEY United Kingdom 1747 – 1801 Milk below Maids A New Love song only happy a piece Pair of etchings on paper Titled in English and French Measures 340 x 260 mm each From the series "Cries of London". Framed
Francis Wheatley RA (1747-1801) Country Girl with Sickle and Keg (i) Country Girl by a Stile (ii) A pair, watercolour, 28 x 20.5cm Signed, and signed with monogram and dated 1795 Provenance: Leger Galleries, London Exhibited: London, Leger Galleries, English Watercolours, 1967, No. 26 The artist’s wife, Clara Maria, née Leigh (c. 1767-1838), whom he married at some point before 1788, inspired some of Wheatley’s most charming works including the present pair of watercolours dating from 1795, in which Clara appears in the guise of pretty – and suspiciously soignée – agricultural workers. As Mary Webster wrote ‘There is a notably French influence in the delicate, politely erotic sensibility to feminine charm in these pictures of Mrs Wheatley’ (Francis Wheatley, 1970, p. 103). As well as modelling for her husband, Clara was a highly accomplished artist in her own right, excelling in miniatures and botanical art. One of her most notable, and unusual, works was The Flowers of Shakespeare commissioned by the architect Sir John Soane (1753-1837), which included a bust of the bard surrounded by all the flowers mentioned in his plays. Among her pupils was Princess Sophia of Gloucester. Clara’s husband, Francis Wheatley has an importance for art in Ireland far greater than the relative brevity of his visit here might suggest. In his paintings of Henry Grattan addressing the Irish House of Commons and the Volunteers assembling on College Green he created two of the iconic images of the Georgian period. He also contributed to Thomas Milton’s topographical enterprise, involved himself in the voguish pursuit of antiquarianism and was among the artists involved in James Woodmason’s attempt to encourage Irish history painting. Wheatley was born in London, he entered the drawing school run by William Shipley and may also have studied briefly with the Welsh landscape painter Richard Wilson before entering the School of the Royal Academy as one its first pupils in November 1769 and, the following year, was elected to membership of the Society of Artists. Having made a brief visit to Ireland in 1767, Wheatley returned in the summer of 1779, fleeing his creditors and a lawsuit brought by his fellow artist John Alexander Gresse, with whose wife he had eloped. He was fortunate in his timing, James Gandon junior noting that he had arrived in Dublin ‘at a time favourable for his professional exertions’ with the excitement surrounding ‘Grattan’s Parliament’ and the rise of the Volunteer movement. In late 1783, or early the following year, Wheatley returned to London. Certainly by the summer of 1784, when he exhibited at the RA for the first time in four years, he was living at 36 Gerrard Street, Soho. The fruits of his time in Ireland were clearly apparent at the Royal Academy summer show and included a View of the Salmon Leap at Leixlip (Yale Center for British Art) and a view of Donnybrook Fair. He was elected to associate membership of the Royal Academy in 1790 and to full membership the following year. Wheatley was described in anobituary as ‘a very personable man, fond of dress and polite in his manners, which made him a great favourite with the ladies’ (Gentleman’s Magazine, Sept. 1801). Mrs Wheatley, shown here, had been one of his pupils, and on his death she married the Cork-born portraitist and actor Alexander Pope.
Francis Wheatley (British, 1747-1801) LUNCH TIME oil on panel, framed, signed H12 1/4" W10 1/4" Provenance: Weatherly Collection Estate of Edison Carlyle Weatherly, Jr.
Ecole du XIXeme siècle, d’après Francis Wheatley (1747-1801) La lettre Huile sur toile 54 x 45 cm Avec cadre : 69 x 58 cm Oil on canvas, 21.2 x 17.7in, with frame : 27.1 x 22.8 in
This is an 18th-century stipple engraving on wove paper executed by J. P. Simon after Francis Wheatley (British, 1747-1801) illustrating a dramatic genre scene from William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew. The scene depicts Petruchio seizing Katherine (Kate) in a confrontational moment, characteristic of the Neo-Classical and Romantic styles favored by the Boydell Shakespeare Gallery project. Inscribed lower left Painted by Francis Wheatley, R.A.. Inscribed lower right Engraved by J. P. Simon. Published Jan'y 1, 1795 by John & Josiah Boydell, at the Shakspeare-Gallery, Pall-Mall, & at N° 90, Cheapside, LONDON. Dimensions: 29"L x 23.5"H
FRANCIS WHEATLEY, R.A. (LONDON 1747-1801 MIDDLESEX). Industry and Idleness. pencil, pen and gray ink and watercolor on paper16 3/8 x 13 ¼ in. (41.3 x 33.7 cm) each, oval(2).
WHEATLEY FRANCIS (1747 - 1801). Interior of a stable with horses and figures. Signed lower left. Provenance: Private collection, Treviso.. 66,50 x 51 cm.
Darstellung zum Briefroman "La nouvelle Heloise", Hochformat, im Passepartout mit den Maßen 46 cm x 37 cm, hinter Glas im Rahmen, (Versandhinweise beachten) / Illustration of the epistolary novel "La nouvelle Heloise", portrait format, in passe-partout measuring 46 cm x 37 cm, behind glass in frame, (please note shipping instructions)
England (Francis Wheatley, 1747 London - 1801 ebenda, ?) circa 1780 Boy with dog in a tree landscape Label "W(...)worth. Pictures and Furniture by Old English Masters (...) London, W" on the stretcher verso. Oil on canvas. 76 x 63 cm. Restored. Damaged. Damage to frame (84.5 x 71.5 cm).
Francis Wheatley (1747-1801), XVIII, Watercolour, A preparatory study for one of the Cries of London images, Turnips and Carrots, Ho! Monogram lower right. Ascribed verso. Approx. 13" x 9"
A captivating and beautifully hand-colored original engraving from the renowned Cries of London series, this work, Plate 6, vividly captures a quintessential street scene of 18th-century urban life. Titled Knives, Scissors, and Razors to Grind, the composition portrays a knife grinder engaging with two elegant young women, one of whom hands him a pair of scissors. A third woman is seen walking away, suggesting the busy rhythm of the day. This plate is based on the original painting by Francis Wheatley, a celebrated English portrait and genre painter and member of the Royal Academy. Wheatley is best known for his Cries of London series, created between 1792 and 1797, which depicted various street vendors and tradespeople plying their goods and services throughout the bustling city. The engraver, Giovanni Vendramini, an accomplished Italian printmaker, interpreted Wheatley's scenes with remarkable delicacy and detail, bringing a lifelike charm to these social documents of Georgian life. Printed on laid paper, this engraving showcases delicate stippling and soft tones, highlighted by original hand-coloring that adds depth and warmth to the figures and architecture. The text below the image includes titles in both English and French, enhancing its appeal to international collectors. Artist: After Francis Wheatley (British 1747-1801) Issued: c. 1800 Dimensions: 16.25"L x 21.25"H Country of Origin: England
A charming and finely executed hand-colored stipple engraving from the celebrated Cries of London series, titled A New Love Song Only Ha'Penny a Piece. This work captures a bustling street scene where a young ballad-seller offers her printed songs to passersby, a small crowd gathered to purchase and hear the latest verses. Painted by Francis Wheatley R.A., the scene blends warmth, narrative detail, and social observation, portraying both the vibrancy and humanity of London's street life in the late 18th century. A small dog and a lively group of figures bring the composition to life, the artist's skill evident in the delicate rendering of fabric, gesture, and expression. Francis Wheatley was an English painter renowned for his portraits, genre scenes, and historical compositions, gaining fame through his idyllic yet socially conscious depictions of London street vendors in the Cries of London series. These works, engraved by master printmakers, became some of the most iconic images of Georgian urban life, treasured for their blend of artistic finesse and documentary charm. Artist: After Francis Wheatley (British 1747-1801) Issued: c. 1800 Dimensions: 16.25"L x 21.25"H Country of Origin: England
Two Bunches a Penny Primroses. [Cries of London] Colourful aquatint, [England], 1801 Inscribed on the sheet with: Painted by F. Wheatley, R.A. - Engraved by L. Schiavonetti. Sheet size: approx. 44 x 32,3 cm. The image is mirror reversed from an engraving from 1893. Condition is very good. Small tear on the edge of the sheet, slightly crushed corner. Margins browned a little, slightly foxing. After Francis Wheatley (Great Britain, 1747-1801).
Milk below Maids. [Cries of London] Colourful aquatint, [England], 1801 Inscribed on the sheet with: Painted by F. Wheatley, R.A. - Engraved by L. Schiavonetti. Sheet size: approx. 44 x 32,8 cm. The image is mirror reversed from an engraving from 1893. Condition is very good. Small tear on the edge of the sheet, slightly crushed corner. Margins browned a little, slightly foxing. After Francis Wheatley (Great Britain, 1747-1801).
Hot Spice Gingerbread Smoaking hot. Cries of London. Plate 12. Engraving, [England], 1796. Inscribed on the sheet with: Painted by F. Wheatley, R.A. - Engraved by Vendramini. Sheet size: approx. 17,6 x 14 in. Good condition. Margins browned a little. After Francis Wheatley (Great Britain, 1747-1801). Artist, engraver and titles in English and French. The plates were engraved by Luigi Schiavonetti, Anthony Cardon and Giovanni Vendramini. Publisher’s line includes “London. Colnaghi & Co. … 132 Pall Mall [or] 127 Pall Mall.” The 13 titles include “Milk below maids”; “Two bunches a penny primroses”; “Sweet China oranges”; “Do you want any matches?”; “New mackerel”; “Knives, scissors and razors to grind”; “Fresh gathered peas young hastings”; “Round and sound, five pence a pound duke cherries”; “Strawberrys scarlet strawberrys”; ”Old chairs to mend”; “A new love song only ha’penny a piece”; “Hot spice gingerbread smoaking hot!”; “Turnips and Carrots ho” Only 13 of the 14 paintings of “The Cries of London” by Wheatley were engraved. They were issued as individual plates from 1793 to 1797, offered afterwards as a folio of thirteen engravings.
A New Love Song only ha’penny a Piece. Cries of London. Plate 11. Engraving, [England], 1796. Inscribed on the sheet with: Painted by F. Wheatley, R.A. - Engraved by A. Cardon. Sheet size: approx. 17,6 x 14 in. Good condition. Margins browned a little. After Francis Wheatley (Great Britain, 1747-1801). Artist, engraver and titles in English and French. The plates were engraved by Luigi Schiavonetti, Anthony Cardon and Giovanni Vendramini. Publisher’s line includes “London. Colnaghi & Co. … 132 Pall Mall [or] 127 Pall Mall.” The 13 titles include “Milk below maids”; “Two bunches a penny primroses”; “Sweet China oranges”; “Do you want any matches?”; “New mackerel”; “Knives, scissors and razors to grind”; “Fresh gathered peas young hastings”; “Round and sound, five pence a pound duke cherries”; “Strawberrys scarlet strawberrys”; ”Old chairs to mend”; “A new love song only ha’penny a piece”; “Hot spice gingerbread smoaking hot!”; “Turnips and Carrots ho” Only 13 of the 14 paintings of “The Cries of London” by Wheatley were engraved. They were issued as individual plates from 1793 to 1797, offered afterwards as a folio of thirteen engravings.
England (Francis Wheatley, 1747 London - 1801 ebenda, ?) circa 1780 Boy with dog in a tree landscape Label "W(...)worth. Pictures and Furniture by Old English Masters (...) London, W" on the stretcher verso. Oil on canvas. 76 x 63 cm. Restored. Damaged. Damage to frame (84.5 x 71.5 cm).
F. Wheatley (American Late 19th Century) 'Dicto' Painting of an American Steam Ship Signed dated 1921 l/r 52in. x 34in (132cm. x 87cm) Framed: 54in. x 36in (137 x. 92cm) Note: Not to be confused with the British portrait painter Francis Wheatley (1747-1801)
Zugeschrieben The Riot in Broad Street on 7th June 1780 Wheatley verlieh das Originalgemälde gegen Bezahlung, damit es als Radierung reproduziert werden konnte (die sehr populär wurde). Das ursprüngliche Gemälde wurde bei einem Brand zerstört, während es für den Kupferstich kopiert wurde. Diese präzise ausgeführte Arbeit unterscheidet sich in ihrer Grösse von der später entstandenen Radierung. Trotz offensichtlicher Gemeinsamkeiten zeigen sich bei näherer Betrachtung einige Abweichungen (z. B. in der Perspektive des Gebäudes im Vordergrund oder in der Form der Rauch- und Wolkengebilde). Somit kann angenommen werden, dass es sich nicht um eine Vorzeichnung für den Kupferstecher handelt, sondern um eine eigenständige Vorarbeit zum verlorenen Originalgemälde. Gerahmt unter Passepartout Ausrufdatum: 07.06.2025 Ungefähre Ausrufzeit: 19:32
Francis Wheatley RA (1747-1801) The Market Cart Watercolour, pen and ink, 14.6 x 22.2cm (5¾ x 8¾) Provenance: Collection of the Hon. Francis D. Murnaghan Jr. thence by descent.
Pair of sepia wash drawings. Two finely executed sepia wash and ink studies of reclining young boys in pastoral settings, each with subtle expressive gestures and rendered with economy and elegance. In period-style mounts and frames. Provenance: The Estate of Jim and Germaine Cahill, Roslevin, Abbeyleix PICTURES AND PRINTS Tuesday 27th May 2025 14:52:39
ATT FRANCIS WHEATLEY (1741-1801). A LATE 18TH CENTURY OIL ON CANVAS COUPLE AT A GATE in a country landscape - in period carved gilt wood frame (60cm high 50cm wide)
A mixed lot To include: [a] Charles Smith, An engraving after Francis Wheatley RA (British, 1747 – 1801), Shepherd Boy, 1800 [b] British, 19th century Figures along a stormy coast with a ruin on hill beyond Watercolour on paper Initialled indistinctly lower left [c] British, 19th century A white park cattle Watercolour and pencil on paper Property of a Lady To be sold without reserve Dimensions: [a] (Frame) 20 in. (H) x 23 in. (W) (Paper) 14 in. (H) x 17 in. (W) [b] (Frame) 15 in. (H) x 17 in. (W) (Paper) 8.5 in. (H) x 10.5 in. (W) [c] (Frame) 13 in. (H) x 11.5 in. (W) (Paper) 7 in. (H) x 7.5 in. (W)
After Francis Wheatley, RA, British 1747-1801- A complete set of thirteen plates from the Cries of London; hand-coloured stipple engravings, each 40 x 30 cm., thirteen (13). Provenance: Private Collection, UK. Note: These prints were engraved variously by Luigi Schiavonetti (1765-1810), Thomas Gauguin (1756-1831), Anthony Cardon (1772-1813), and Giovanni Vendramini (1769-1839), after Wheatley's original paintings which were exhibited at the Royal Academy between 1792 and 1795. Thirteen of the fourteen paintings were soon engraved, and initially issued as individual plates before later being offered as a folio. The titles include: 'Two bunches a penny primroses, two bunches a penny', 'Milk below Maids', 'Sweet China Oranges, sweet China', 'Do you want any Matches?', 'New Mackerel, New Mackerel', 'Knives, Scissors, and Razors to Grind', 'Fresh Gathered Peas, Young Hastings', 'Round & Sound Five pence a Pound Duke Cherries', 'Strawberrys, Scarlet Strawberrys', 'Old Chairs to mend', 'A New Love Song only ha'penny a piece', 'Hot Spice Gingerbread, Smoking hot!', and 'Turnips & Carrots ho'.
Circle of Francis Wheatley, RA, British 1747-1801- Children playing tambourines and dancing; black chalk, pen and brown ink on paper, signed with initials 'MW' (lower right), 34.4 x 50.6 cm. Provenance: Private Collection, UK.
FRANCIS WHEATLEY, RA BRITISH, 1747-1801 MOTHER AND THREE CHILDREN OUTSIDE A COTTAGE Watercolor on paper Lower right signed: F. Wheatley RA Catalogue note: During the first half of his career Francis Wheatley painted small-scale portraits in which figures--the ladies with gaily colored apparel--were informally posed and silhouetted against darker landscape backgrounds. He also produced conversation pieces and landscapes, both in oil and watercolor, in which everyday rustic incidents were featured. Later in his career, Wheatley concentrated on his work for which he is best known, sentimental scenes intended for engraving and for distribution on the French and English markets. These scenes depicted bourgeois morality and modern literature, as well as fancy pictures--genre pictures in which sentiment was combined with domestic or rustic realism. Source: NGA, Washington, D.C. online
Francis Wheatley R.A. (British 1747-1801), Henry and Jenny, signed and dated 'Wheatley delt./1786' (lower left), watercolour, image 41 x 33 cm, framed and glazed 65 x 55 cm. Provenance With the Fine Art Society, Ltd, London, no.9923. Private collection, UK.
Francis Wheatley England, (1747 - 1801) 11 Works: Cries of London, Print Series hand colored aquatint etchings all custom framed. smaller frames 24 1/2 x 20in, larger 25 1/4 x 20 3/4in
Francis Wheatley RA (1747-1801) The Market Cart Watercolour, pen and ink, 14.6 x 22.2cm (5¾ x 8¾) Provenance: Collection of Hon. Francis D. Murnaghan Jr. thence by descent.
Francis Wheatley R.A. (British 1747-1801) Henry and Jenny signed and dated 'Wheatley delt./1786' (lower left), watercolour, image 41 x 33 cm, framed and glazed 65 x 55 cm. Provenance With the Fine Art Society, Ltd, London, no.9923. Private collection, UK.
FRANCIS WHEATLEY, RA BRITISH, 1747-1801 MOTHER AND THREE CHILDREN OUTSIDE A COTTAGE Watercolor on paper Lower right signed: F. Wheatley RA Catalogue note: During the first half of his career Francis Wheatley painted small-scale portraits in which figures--the ladies with gaily colored apparel--were informally posed and silhouetted against darker landscape backgrounds. He also produced conversation pieces and landscapes, both in oil and watercolor, in which everyday rustic incidents were featured. Later in his career, Wheatley concentrated on his work for which he is best known, sentimental scenes intended for engraving and for distribution on the French and English markets. These scenes depicted bourgeois morality and modern literature, as well as fancy pictures--genre pictures in which sentiment was combined with domestic or rustic realism. Source: NGA, Washington, DC online
FRANCIS WHEATLEY RA (1747-1801) Travellers Resting on a Country Road Oil on canvas, 48.5 x 65cm Provenance: Miss Elizabeth Laidlaw, Castleknock, Co. Dublin, circa 1940's and thence by descent; Whytes Auctioneers, Dublin, 25th April 2006 lot no. 103; The Gorry Gallery, An Exhibition of 18th to 20th Century Irish Painting, March 2008, catalogue no. 5 Born in London, the son of a tailor, Francis Wheatley first trained at William Shipley’s academy. He may also have received some instruction from Richard Wilson, to whom Strickland attributes his later excellence in the field of landscape painting.1 At the age of fifteen he was awarded a prize for drawing by the Society of Artists; further prizes followed in 1763, ‘67 and ‘69. During these years he travelled to expand his artistic education. He appears to have first visited Ireland in 1767, for in the records of the Society of Artists for that year it is recorded that a half-share in the premium for views from nature went to “Francis Wheatley in Ireland”.2 His career progressed rapidly. After only a year at the Royal Academy Schools he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Artists, and by 1772 was made Director of that body. At this time his work consisted mostly of small, full-length portraits and conversation pieces in the manner of Johan Zoffany. He also undertook commissions to paint the interiors of certain noblemen’s homes, including Brocket Hall for Lord Melbourne. During these years he developed what was to be his signature style of clear, pale colour handled in a free and sensitive manner. Success however, led to profligacy. He accrued debts and had, in the words of Edward Edwards, “the folly to engage in an intrigue” with the wife of a fellow artist, John Alexander Gresse.3 In 1779 Wheatley fled to Ireland with Mrs Gresse, whom he passed off as his wife. Prior to this deception becoming known, Wheatley received several important portrait commissions in Ireland including The Macartney Family (Art Gallery, Ontario) and The Marquess and Marchioness of Antrim (NGI). He also executed some of the most important large-scale history paintings of his career whilst in Dublin. The best known of these are The Irish House of Commons in 1780 (the only contemporary painting of the interior of the House of Commons) and A View of College Green with the meeting of the Volunteers on the 4th November 1779 (NGI). This last named work was first exhibited at the Society of Artists in William Street, Dublin, in 1880, along with four others by Wheatley – two portraits and two landscapes of Clontarf and Kingstown (Dun Laoghaire) respectively. This was to be his only public exhibition in Ireland. In addition to official portraits and history paintings, Wheatley toured Ireland painting delicate watercolour landscapes and studies of the Irish peasantry. Crookshank and Glin note that ”Wheatley’s Irish work is especially interesting for a number of genre subjects in the Wouverman manner of Irish fairs, fisherfolk and gipsy encampments” and comment that they “capture the late eighteenth century Irish scene better than most artists because of their fluency, clarity and gaiety”.4 According to Mary Webster, Wheatley owned a number of drawings by the Dutch master Phillip Wouver mans and was a great admirer of his depictions of travellers and country fairs.5 Both artists evidently empathised with their subjects; in the words of Gandon and Mulvany, Wheatley “succeeded in delineating the characters of the peasantry, in perfect accordance with the humours he met with on these subjects”.6 It was this empathy that led James Kelly to rate Wheatley’s Irish genre scenes as “one of the most rewarding and appealing vistas on to the daily life of the common people of late eighteenth century Ireland”.7 Among Wheatley’s Irish genre scenes are a number of watercolours in the National Gallery of Donnybrook Fair, which were the basis of a large oil of that subject exhibited at the RA in 1784 (no. 91). These share many attributes in common with the present oil, including the artfully arranged groupings of people and animals, the play of light and shade with some groups seen in silhouette from behind, and the use of a narrow device such as a staff or in this case a horse-whip to lead the eye from figure to figure. In Scene at a Fair (reproduced in Webster, op. cit., page 51), a small figure in a travelling cloak is seated in the foreground, echoing the placing of the man with his roughly pinned cloak in the Travellers Resting on a Country Road. In both the watercolours and the present oil Wheatley displays his command of animal painting by depicting horses and donkeys from every conceivable view-point, invariably placing them in such a way as to again direct the eye into the main focal point of the composition. Horses feature in another oil painting, A Gypsy Encampment in Ireland, integrated into the main grouping of figures (Colonel Grant collection, see Webster, page 133). The somewhat malevolent stare of a mongrel dog accosts the viewer, a device that reoccurs in Riot in Broad Street (engraved 1790, fig. 61 in Webster). Wheatley returned to London early in 1784. In that year’s RA exhibition he showed four Irish works. His depictions of Irish fair scenes and country folk proved popular in England, and he continued to produce them long after he returned from Ireland. These Irish peasants also gradually evolved into general rustic ‘types’, which likewise found a ready market among English audiences. Wheatley went on to specialise in this genre, with his Cries of London becoming one of best-selling series of eighteenth century prints. In 1791 he was elected a Royal Academician, but his final years were plagued by gout and debts. 1 Walter Strickland, A Dictionary of Irish Artists, Vol. II, Maunsel & Co., Dublin, 1913, page 519. The most comprehensive source of information on Wheatley is the monograph on him by Mary Webster, Francis Wheatley, Paul Mellon Centre for British Art, 1970. 2 Ibid. 3 Edward Edwards, Anecdotes of Painters, who have resided or been born in England with critical remarks on their productions, Leigh and Sotheby, London, 1808, quoted by Anne Crookshank and the Knight of Glin, Ireland’s Painters 1600-1940, Yale, New Haven and London, 2002, page 164. 4 Ibid., page 166. 5 Webster, op. cit., page 48. 6 James Gandon and T. J. Mulvany, The Life of James Gandon, Esq, quoted in Webster, op. cit., page 48. 7 James Kelly, ‘Francis Wheatley: His Irish Paintings, 1779—83’, in Adele M. Dalsimer (ed.), Visualizing Ireland: National Identity and the Pictorial Tradition, Faber & Faber, Boston and London, 1993, page 160.
Francis Wheatley - Signed and Dated 1797 This is a very large piece and beautifully framed. It is an Oil on Canvas... signed F Wheatley and dated 1797. Francis Wheatley RA (1747 – 28 June 1801) was an English portrait and landscape painter. Wheatley was born at Wild Court, Covent Garden, London, the son of a master tailor. He studied at William Shipley's drawing school and the Royal Academy, and won several prizes from the Society of Arts. He assisted in the decoration of Vauxhall, and aided John Hamilton Mortimer in painting a ceiling for Lord Melbourne at Brocket Hall in Hertfordshire. You can Google Francis Wheatley and the title of this painting "Winter Fuel" and there are many reproduction websites that come up with copies or Art Prints of this piece. The frame measures 150cm by 123cm, and comes with Gallery Presentation Light still affixed to the frame, with wiring to hardwire to a wall switch. Provenance: Sir Robert Cravens Private Collection (UK), and this piece was valued in 2003 by Famous UK Valuer Gurr Johns at 7500 UK Sterling Pounds. Grab this piece of Investment Art.
![Two Bunches a Penny Primroses. [Cries of London] Colourful aquatint, [England], 1801](https://image.invaluable.com/housePhotos/Kabinett/97/794997/H20463-L408951920.jpg)
![Milk below Maids. [Cries of London] Colourful aquatint, [England], 1801](https://image.invaluable.com/housePhotos/Kabinett/97/794997/H20463-L408951902.jpg)
![Hot Spice Gingerbread Smoaking hot. Cries of London. Plate 12. Engraving, [England], 1796.](https://image.invaluable.com/housePhotos/Kabinett/97/794997/H20463-L408950776.jpg)
![A New Love Song only ha’penny a Piece. Cries of London. Plate 11. Engraving, [England], 1796.](https://image.invaluable.com/housePhotos/Kabinett/97/794997/H20463-L408950735.jpg)
