Reynolds was born on July 16, 1723, in Plympton, Devon, England. His father, a clergyman, conducted a grammar school. Reynolds was one of his pupils, but he preferred sketching on the margins of his Latin exercises to studying. He also copied drawings at every chance. Apprenticed at age 17 to Thomas Hudson, a popular London portrait painter, Reynolds studied with him for three years. The next few years he divided between Plymouth and London.

At Plymouth Reynolds met Lord Edgecumbe, who became a lifelong patron. Edgecumbe introduced him to Augustus Keppel, commander of the Mediterranean squadron of the British fleet. Keppel gave him passage to Rome, where for two years Reynolds studied the Italian masters. In the drafty galleries of Rome, Reynolds caught a cold that led to permanent deafness.

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In 1752 he returned to London. There he established himself as a portrait painter, and success came quickly. Nearly every distinguished English family of the time sat for a Reynolds portrait. The artist became especially well known for his portraits of women and children. He never married but maintained a splendid London house and was active in society. In 1764 he founded the Literary Club, whose members included such famous people as authors Samuel Johnson and Oliver Goldsmith, statesman Edmund Burke, and actor David Garrick.

In 1768 Reynolds became president of the newly founded Royal Academy, and the next year he was knighted by King George III. From 1769 through 1790 he delivered a "Discourse" at each prize awarding of the Royal Academy. These lectures preserve Reynolds' ideas on the proper training of artists: learning to draw and to use color, studying masterpieces, and comparing these to nature. The "Discourses" reflect the taste of his time, a balanced appreciation of earlier models and of nature with subjects drawn from history and fable. Reynolds died in London on Feb. 23, 1792.

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