Mrs. Jerathmael Bowers
Particulars
- Accession number
- 15.128
Meanwhile, in the life of John Singleton Copley
The whole life1753–1774 · Workplace
Boston
1760s
A needy tobacconist’s son among Boston’s elite
The income Copley earned by painting in the 1760s was extraordinary for his town and time and raised the son of a needy tobacconist into the local aristocracy. The foremost personages of New England came to his painting-room as sitters.
30 September 1762
Asks Liotard for Swiss pastel crayons
Copley writes to the Swiss painter Jean-Étienne Liotard asking for a set of the best Swiss crayons for drawing portraits, in the hope that America will one day become a school of the fine arts. The pastels arrive and are put to use; Copley was a pioneer American pastellist.
