Francis Danby

Danby was born near Wexford, Ireland, one of the two sons of Irish parents. He exhibited his first oil painting at the Society of Artists of Ireland in 1813, and used the proceeds from its sale to travel to London to see the Royal Academy’s annual exhibition. He initially settled in Bristol and exhibited in London, where his works were well received. His subject matter moved from local subjects to secluded forests and valleys, and his watercolors, Romantic in spirit, are filled with dense color. Danby is known for his imaginary, poetic landscapes, which often have no literary, classical, or biblical grounding or material. Danby had a tumultuous personal life; he eventually moved to London, then to the continent, and back to London before ending his days in Exmouth, Devon.