Paintings by James Ward

Paintings by James Ward

James Ward, the maternal uncle of Edward "Old" Williams, and for a short time his caretaker, was born in London on October 23, 1769 - the son of James and Rachel Ward, the elder James beng a laborer in the cider cellars. The younger James at the age 13 apprenticed briefly under the master engraver John Raphael Smith, then around 1793 began training under his older brother William Ward, who himself was an engraver of considerable note. James became a mezzotinter, and quickly established himself as one of the most talented engravers in London.

Impressed by his brother-in-law, the notorious but exceptionally gifted painter George Morland, Ward became interested in painting. By 1791, he had left his brother's employ and instead of engraving other peoples works began engraving his own compositions and trying his hand with the brush. Although he probably never received any formal instruction from his brother-in-law, his early paintings depicted rustic scenes similar to Morland's style. From these he moved on to compositions of animals fighting, similar to some of the work of Peter Paul Rubens. Starting about 1810, he began painting landscapes featuring animals, which made him one of the best-known painters of London, and led to his being elected to the Royal Academy of Art in 1811. Though not executed by Ward until 1834, the engraving on the left is from this period of his life.

His landscapes became larger and grander, and he began work in 1811 or 1812 on the Gordale Scar in West Yorkshire, a wild, rocky chasm so dark and dense that the respected art collector Sir George Beaumont said it could not be painted. However, Ward's immense 11 by 14 feet canvas of "Gordale Scar", which he completed in 1814 or 1815, successfully captured the majesty of the scar, and it is considered his masterpiece. This work hangs today in the Tate Gallery of London.

After winning a prize of 1,000 gold guineas (equal to 1,000 pounds sterling) from the British Institution in 1815 for the best allegory commemorating Wellington's victory at the Battle of Waterloo, Ward was entrusted with the commission of the painting and began work on his "Allegory of Waterloo". Completed in 1821 as a gigantic 21 by 35 ft canvas, and displayed in 1822 in the Egyptian Hall in Piccadilly, both public and critics condemned it. Ward himself was unhappy with the result, and the work was soon relegated to storage. It was cut up after Ward's death and and all that remains today is the small-canvas study that he submitted to the British Institution to win the commission, and the concept sketch that the study was painted from. The failure of this painting, coupled with the death of his daughter Emma in 1817, and then his wife Emma two years later, embittered him, and he became increasingly withdrawn from the art world.

As with most artists of his day, Ward's livelyhood depended on commissions from wealthy patrons for portraits of their horses, pets and families. One such patron, and a gentleman whom Ward numbered among his closw friends, was Theophilus Levett of Wynchnor Park, Staffordshire. Ward's 1811 painting of "The Reverend Thomas Levett and His Favourite Dogs, Cock-Shooting" is an early example of his work for the family, and his portrait of "Theophilus Levett Hunting at Wychnor, Staffordshire" painted in 1817 ranks among his best-known paintings. However, it is the "The Deer Stealer" that was commissioned by Levett in 1823 for the sum of 500 guineas, which stands out among the others. Levett is said to have been so pleased with the canvas that he raised the commission to 600 guineas, and it was rumored that Ward turned down an offer of 1,000 guineas from a nobleman. This painting hangs today with the "Gordale Scar" in the Tate Gallery.

Ward is probably best known for his horse portraits, which stand out among his works from the 1820s. The portrait above right from an 1826 engraving by an unknown artist, captures Ward during this part of his life. He moved to Cheshunt in Hertfordshire in 1830 with his second wife Charlotte, and began focusing more and more on paintings with religious themes. He also painted many portraits, a number of which hang in the National Portrait Gallery in London. Nonetheless, he did not enjoy the popularity and prosperity in his later years that he knew in the early 1800s. A stroke in 1855 resulted in partial paralysis and ended his career as an artist. He is said to have died in poverty on November 7, 1859 at his cottage in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire. Wikipedia Article

James Ward displayed his work from 1790 to 1855 (400 paintings) at all the major exhibitions of his day, including the Royal Academy (298 paintings), the Suffolk Street Gallery of the Royal Association of British Artists (9 paintings), and the British Institution (91 paintings). He also exhibited twice for the Society of Artists before its 1791 demise -- an exhibition that preceded the Royal Academy and was eventually eclipsed by it.

Today, several hundred examples of his work can be seen in museums and public art galleries all over the world, an extensive list of which is given online in ArtCyclopedia. Many of his works on public display in Britain are included on the Art UK website. A partial list of a few major venues is given below.

Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England (7 paintings)
National Portrait Gallery, London, England (30 portraits)
Tate Gallery, London, England (16 paintings and several prints)
Royal Academy of Arts Collection, London, England (3 paintings and several drawings)
Fitzwilliam Museum at the University of Cambridge, England (6 paintings)
National Museums and Galleries of Wales (3 paintings)
National Gallery of Victoria, Australia (1 painting)
Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colorado (2 paintings)

and various other galleries and museums, including

The Royal Collection, London, England (1 painting)
Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery, England (1 painting)
Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, England (1 painting)
Courtauld Institute of Art, London, England (several drawings)
New Art Gallery, Walsall, England (1 painting and a drawing)
Southampton City Art Gallery, England
Tyne & Wear Museums, England (2 paintings)
Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, British Columbia, Canada (1 painting)
Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia (1 painting)
National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. (prints and drawings)
Dahesh Museum, New York City (1 painting)
Harvard University Art Museums, Massachusetts (2 drawings)
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts (drawings)
Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, Connecticut
Art Institute of Chicago (1 painting)
Oklahoma City Museum of Art (1 painting)
The Huntington Library, California (drawings)

Paintings by James Ward James Ward, the maternal uncle of Edward "Old" Williams, and for a short time his caretaker, was born in London on October 23, 1769 - the son of James and Rachel Ward, the elder James beng a laborer in the cider cellars. The younger James at the age 13 apprenticed briefly under the master engraver John Raphael Smith, then around 1793 began training under his older brother William Ward, who himself was an engraver of considerable note. James became a mezzotinter, and quickly established himself as one of the most talented engravers in London. Impressed by his brother-in-law, the notorious but exceptionally gifted painter George Morland, Ward became interested in painting. By 1791, he had left his brother's employ and instead of engraving other peoples works began engraving his own compositions and trying his hand with the brush. Although he probably never received any formal instruction from his brother-in-law, his early paintings depicted rustic scenes similar to Morland's style. From these he moved on to compositions of animals fighting, similar to some of the work of Peter Paul Rubens. Starting about 1810, he began painting landscapes featuring animals, which made him one of the best-known painters of London, and led to his being elected to the Royal Academy of Art in 1811. Though not executed by Ward until 1834, the engraving on the left is from this period of his life. His landscapes became larger and grander, and he began work in 1811 or 1812 on the Gordale Scar in West Yorkshire, a wild, rocky chasm so dark and dense that the respected art collector Sir George Beaumont said it could not be painted. However, Ward's immense 11 by 14 feet canvas of "Gordale Scar", which he completed in 1814 or 1815, successfully captured the majesty of the scar, and it is considered his masterpiece. This work hangs today in the Tate Gallery of London. After winning a prize of 1,000 gold guineas (equal to 1,000 pounds sterling) from the British Institution in 1815 for the best allegory commemorating Wellington's victory at the Battle of Waterloo, Ward was entrusted with the commission of the painting and began work on his "Allegory of Waterloo". Completed in 1821 as a gigantic 21 by 35 ft canvas, and displayed in 1822 in the Egyptian Hall in Piccadilly, both public and critics condemned it. Ward himself was unhappy with the result, and the work was soon relegated to storage. It was cut up after Ward's death and and all that remains today is the small-canvas study that he submitted to the British Institution to win the commission, and the concept sketch that the study was painted from. The failure of this painting, coupled with the death of his daughter Emma in 1817, and then his wife Emma two years later, embittered him, and he became increasingly withdrawn from the art world. As with most artists of his day, Ward's livelyhood depended on commissions from wealthy patrons for portraits of their horses, pets and families. One such patron, and a gentleman whom Ward numbered among his closw friends, was Theophilus Levett of Wynchnor Park, Staffordshire. Ward's 1811 painting of "The Reverend Thomas Levett and His Favourite Dogs, Cock-Shooting" is an early example of his work for the family, and his portrait of "Theophilus Levett Hunting at Wychnor, Staffordshire" painted in 1817 ranks among his best-known paintings. However, it is the "The Deer Stealer" that was commissioned by Levett in 1823 for the sum of 500 guineas, which stands out among the others. Levett is said to have been so pleased with the canvas that he raised the commission to 600 guineas, and it was rumored that Ward turned down an offer of 1,000 guineas from a nobleman. This painting hangs today with the "Gordale Scar" in the Tate Gallery. Ward is probably best known for his horse portraits, which stand out among his works from the 1820s. The portrait above right from an 1826 engraving by an unknown artist, captures Ward during this part of his life. He moved to Cheshunt in Hertfordshire in 1830 with his second wife Charlotte, and began focusing more and more on paintings with religious themes. He also painted many portraits, a number of which hang in the National Portrait Gallery in London. Nonetheless, he did not enjoy the popularity and prosperity in his later years that he knew in the early 1800s. A stroke in 1855 resulted in partial paralysis and ended his career as an artist. He is said to have died in poverty on November 7, 1859 at his cottage in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire. Wikipedia Article James Ward displayed his work from 1790 to 1855 (400 paintings) at all the major exhibitions of his day, including the Royal Academy (298 paintings), the Suffolk Street Gallery of the Royal Association of British Artists (9 paintings), and the British Institution (91 paintings). He also exhibited twice for the Society of Artists before its 1791 demise -- an exhibition that preceded the Royal Academy and was eventually eclipsed by it. Today, several hundred examples of his work can be seen in museums and public art galleries all over the world, an extensive list of which is given online in ArtCyclopedia. Many of his works on public display in Britain are included on the Art UK website. A partial list of a few major venues is given below. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England (7 paintings) National Portrait Gallery, London, England (30 portraits) Tate Gallery, London, England (16 paintings and several prints) Royal Academy of Arts Collection, London, England (3 paintings and several drawings) Fitzwilliam Museum at the University of Cambridge, England (6 paintings) National Museums and Galleries of Wales (3 paintings) National Gallery of Victoria, Australia (1 painting) Denver Art Museum, Denver, Colorado (2 paintings) and various other galleries and museums, including The Royal Collection, London, England (1 painting) Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery, England (1 painting) Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, England (1 painting) Courtauld Institute of Art, London, England (several drawings) New Art Gallery, Walsall, England (1 painting and a drawing) Southampton City Art Gallery, England Tyne & Wear Museums, England (2 paintings) Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, British Columbia, Canada (1 painting) Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia (1 painting) National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C. (prints and drawings) Dahesh Museum, New York City (1 painting) Harvard University Art Museums, Massachusetts (2 drawings) Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts (drawings) Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, Connecticut Art Institute of Chicago (1 painting) Oklahoma City Museum of Art (1 painting) The Huntington Library, California (drawings)
	James Ward - circa 1790 - Peasants Snowballing One of Ward's earliest paintings, it is very much in the style of his brother-in-law George Morland and could have easily been passed off as one of Moreland's works.
	James Ward 1793 - Smugglers (after George Morland) - Left 1793 - Fishermen (after George Morland) - Right The hand-colored, mezzotint engraving on the left is by James Ward from one of George Morland's paintings. It was published on Nov. 1, 1793 by Ward's former master John Raphael Smith, and it is one of four or so engravings that Ward did of Morland's paintings for which he received full credit. However, James' older brother William is credited with 69 engravings of Morland's paintings, yet some of these undoubtedly were engraved by James during his apprenticeship under his brother. The companion mezzotint on the right is also one of Morland's paintings, engraved by James Ward and also published on Nov. 1, 1793 by John Raphael Smith. Most consider these two mezzotints to be among James Ward's best engravings.
	James Ward - 1795 - A Livery Stable A mezzotint by James Ward that was published Jan. 1, 1796 by T. Simpson. Although an original composition by Ward, it is still very much in the style of George Morland. A hand-colored version of the same mezzotint is on the right.
	James Ward 1797 - Fight Between a Tiger and a Lion (Left) 1806 - Boa Serpent Seizing his Prey (Right) The painting on the left is an early one of Ward's, done in the style of Rubens, from the period when he was still known primarily as an engraver. He later made an engraving of this work and published it on June 1, 1799 by himself. Another painting of his in the style of Rubens is on the right, which is a portrait of King George IV's favorite mount Apollo.
	James Ward 1798 - Cattle by a River (Left) undated - Landscape with Sheep (Right) As James Ward progressed as a painter, he developed his own unique style, which is evident in these two landscapes with animals. Although Ward was a very versatile painter, adept at many painting styles, and equally at home as a landscape painter as he was as a portrait painter, he is probably best remembered for his animal paintings, such as these.
	James Ward 1795-1799 - The Runaway Wagon (left) 1800 - The Reapers (Right) - Fitzwilliam Museum Two scenes of the country life, somewhat in the style of Ward's brother-in-law George Morland. Although the painting on the left is not dated, there is an inscription on the wagon that reads "Ward x Paddington", and given that Ward lived in Paddington from 1795 to 1799, we can probably assume that he made the painting at some point during his residency there.
	James Ward 1808 - Fighting Horses (Left) 1827 - L'Amour de Cheval (Left) This painting was sold by Ward for thirty guineas in 1807, then exhibited at the Royal Academy the following year. It was painted during a time when his reputation as a painter was on the rise. Another painting of a pair of horses, but this time with amorous intentions instead of anger, and executed nearly 20 years later, is on the right.
	James Ward 1811 - Rev. Thomas Levett and Favorite Dogs, Cock-Shooting. 1812 - John Levett receiving pheasants from his retriever at Wychnor Hall The Rev. Thomas Levett of Packington Hall was a well-known sportsman and close friend of James Ward, and Ward received several commissions for paingings from both Thomas and his brother Theophilus. These mostly date from 1811, when Ward became a member of the Royal Academy, and was at the height of his popularity. Some of them rank among his best. Although the canvas on the right is identified as a portrait of John Levett, the man in it looks very much like Thomas Levett.
James Ward - 1811-1813 - Gordale Scar - Tate Gallery, London Although the Gordale Scar was thought by many at the time to be much too dark and dense to be painted, Ward's interpretation of this scene, shown at left, is considered by many to be his masterpiece. It is an immense 11 ft by 14 ft canvas that hangs today in the Tate Gallery of London. A much smaller and brighter version of the scar that Ward painted sometime later is on the right.
	James Ward 1817 - Theophilus Levett Hunting at Wychnor, Staffordshire (Left) undated - The Levett Children. John, Theophilus and Frances Levett (Right) The portrait on the left is of Theophilus Levett of Wychnor Hall, the Sheriff of Staffordshire and the bother of Ward's friend Thomas Levett. It is one of Ward's most popular paintings, as well as an early example of the horse portraits for which he is best known. The painting at right shows the children of Theophilus.
James Ward - 1821 - The Allegory of Waterloo On the left is the preliminary 35 � 52 inch, oil-on-canvas study of the Allegory of Waterloo, for which Ward in 1815 won a prize of 1,000 gold guineas (1,000 £), and a commission to execute a full-size version of the work for the British Institution. The small study survives today in the collection of the Royal Hospital Chelsea, and Ward's concept sketch for it is on the right. The end result was a giant 21 by 35 ft painting that took Ward six years to execute. Displayed in 1822 in the Egyption Hall in Piccadilly, this huge canvas was not popular with the public, nor the art world, and soon thereafter it was placed in storage to be forgotten. Ward was not happy with it either, and, not long after his death, it was cut into pieces that have since disappeared.
	James Ward - 1823 - The Deer Stealer Painted for Theophilus Levett, the painting on the left was exhibited at the Royal Academy, afterwhich Ward received counter offers from other buyers for the painting, but Ward stayed true to Levett. A detail of this painting, painted by Ward in 1828 for another patron, is on the right. The Deer Stealer ranks with Gordale Scar as one of his masterpieces.
	James Ward 1822 - Fanny (left) undated - Dalmatian Dogs (Right) Dog portraits were another lucrative source of commissions for Ward.
	James Ward 1824 - Marengo (left) undated - Elephant (Right) Ward painted many horse portraits as he got older and these are what he is best remembered for. They also provided him his best commissions in the years when his popularity was in decline. The portrait on the left of Marengo, Napoleon's mount at Waterloo, is one of Ward's most reproduced works. The undated horse painting on the right probably dates from this period also.
	James Ward 1834 - The Family Compact (left) 1845 - Sketch of the Family Compact (Right) - Fitzwilliam Museum The Family Compact was exhibited by Ward in 1834 as entry no. 155 at the Suffolk Street Galleries of the British Institution. It depicts his mother Rachel, and his second wife Charlotte, with the small painting to the left of the coach they are sitting on showing Ward at work at his easel. The image shown here is from a plate in C. Reginald Grundy's 1909 biography on Ward. The painting on the right, which is a modified copy of the original, was prepared by Ward many years later, and today hangs in the collection of the Fitzwilliam Museum at the University of Cambridge.
	Ward executed many self-portraits of himself. The engraving on the far left is by Ward, but it is after a picture painted earlier by his son-in-law John Jackson. Though Ward made this engraving in 1834, it shows the artist at a much earlier time in his life. The two color self protraits below and center are Ward's own work, and date from 1834 (left) and 1848 (right). Both hang in the National Portrait Gallery of London, along with 28 other portraits from his brush. Also shown is the drawing Ward made of himself for the 1834 portrait, and a July 27, 1848 drawing (far right) of Ward by Edward Matthew Ward (not a blood relation), who married Henrietta Ada Ward, granddaughter of the elder Ward.
These two landscapes, executed by James Ward late in life when he was in his 70s, shows that despite his age, he had not lost any of his skills as an artist. 1840 - Kenilworth Castle, Warwickshire - Left 1847 - Overshot Mill in Wales (Aberdulais) - Right