Thomas Sidney Cooper RA
Thomas Sidney Cooper RA
1803 - 1902
Born in Canterbury, 1803; Died in Vernon Holme, nr. Canterbury, 1902
English painter of animals; mostly cattle and sheep.
Thomas Sidney Cooper showed an interest in drawing from an early age and enrolled at the Royal Academy Schools in 1824. Cooper's early career was spent working mostly in pencil and watercolour but during a stay in Brussels in 1827 he was introduced to oils by the Flemish animal painter Eugene Verboeckhoven, who also shared with him the techniques of 17th century Dutch animal painting. Cooper returned to London in 1831 and quickly found a willing patronage for his new animal subjects, one of whom was the well known Victorian patron, Robert Vernon (1774-1849). Cooper became fondly known as 'Cow' Cooper and the Victorian public fell in love with his charming and accurate depictions of various breeds of cattle, sheep, goats and donkeys. Cooper became so admired as an animalier that in 1847 the Victorian landscape painter Frederick Richard Lee (1798-1879) asked him to collaborate on a series of paintings (Lee would paint the landscapes and Cooper would add in the various animals). Their collaborative relationship lasted until 1856.
Cooper was a prolific exhibitor during his long career. He showed at the New Watercolour Society, the British Institution and the Royal Society of British Artists. However, it is at the Royal Academy where Cooper is best known as an exhibitor. Between 1833 and 1902 Cooper exhibited 266 works without break and remains the longest continuous exhibitor in the academy's long history. Cooper was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy in 1845 and a full member in 1867. In 1882 he presented his own art gallery, titled the Sidney Cooper Art Gallery, to the city of Canterbury (now known as the Royal Museum and Art Gallery). This museum holds the most comprehensive collection of Cooper's work, including many paintings, works on paper, and a variety of personal memorabilia.
Cooper is represented by a number of collections including Tate, Royal Collection, British Museum, and Victoria and Albert Museum. Provincial collections include those in Birmingham, Bradford, Brighton, Cambridge, Canterbury, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, City of London, Croydon, Harrogate, Hastings, Kirklees, Leamington Spa, Leeds, Leicester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Rotherham, Sheffield, Wolverhampton, and York, among others.
(Benjamin Angwin – September 2014)
English painter of animals; mostly cattle and sheep.
Thomas Sidney Cooper showed an interest in drawing from an early age and enrolled at the Royal Academy Schools in 1824. Cooper's early career was spent working mostly in pencil and watercolour but during a stay in Brussels in 1827 he was introduced to oils by the Flemish animal painter Eugene Verboeckhoven, who also shared with him the techniques of 17th century Dutch animal painting. Cooper returned to London in 1831 and quickly found a willing patronage for his new animal subjects, one of whom was the well known Victorian patron, Robert Vernon (1774-1849). Cooper became fondly known as 'Cow' Cooper and the Victorian public fell in love with his charming and accurate depictions of various breeds of cattle, sheep, goats and donkeys. Cooper became so admired as an animalier that in 1847 the Victorian landscape painter Frederick Richard Lee (1798-1879) asked him to collaborate on a series of paintings (Lee would paint the landscapes and Cooper would add in the various animals). Their collaborative relationship lasted until 1856.
Cooper was a prolific exhibitor during his long career. He showed at the New Watercolour Society, the British Institution and the Royal Society of British Artists. However, it is at the Royal Academy where Cooper is best known as an exhibitor. Between 1833 and 1902 Cooper exhibited 266 works without break and remains the longest continuous exhibitor in the academy's long history. Cooper was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy in 1845 and a full member in 1867. In 1882 he presented his own art gallery, titled the Sidney Cooper Art Gallery, to the city of Canterbury (now known as the Royal Museum and Art Gallery). This museum holds the most comprehensive collection of Cooper's work, including many paintings, works on paper, and a variety of personal memorabilia.
Cooper is represented by a number of collections including Tate, Royal Collection, British Museum, and Victoria and Albert Museum. Provincial collections include those in Birmingham, Bradford, Brighton, Cambridge, Canterbury, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, City of London, Croydon, Harrogate, Hastings, Kirklees, Leamington Spa, Leeds, Leicester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Rotherham, Sheffield, Wolverhampton, and York, among others.
(Benjamin Angwin – September 2014)