Biography of William Hogarth, Life and Work

William Hogarth was a great British artist born in November 1697. His father Richard Hogarth was a schoolmaster. After the early death of his father William became little disturbed. His training got affected and was forced to earn money. Ellis Gamble, who was a distant relation of Hogarth, was a plate engraver. Hogarth started his apprenticeship with him in 1713-14. In few years he started his own business of engraving. He became so expert in his field that he produced two engraved allegories in 1721.

The South Scheme and The Lottery were two topical prints that grabbed attention and after the start of black and white satires by Hogarth he became very popular in Britain and even in other countries also. William Hogarth was a man of unique nature and his thoughts were also unique. He did many inventions in English art. He was the one who first started painting with the themes from Shakespeare and Milton. He also founded the original genre of moral history. These works of William Hogarth were known as Hogarthian.

William Hogarth got his first success with his painting in which he painted family and friends in an informal manner surrounded by the usual household things. The Fishing party and The wedding of Stephen Bechingam and Mary Cox in 1730 are some of his paintings that shows his own individuality among his rivals. In 1726 Hogarth painted the portrait of actor David Garrick as Richard III and he earned 200 pounds. This is the highest amount, which any English painter has ever earned for a portrait.

William Hogarth got married in 1729 with Jane Thornhill the daughter of Sir James Thornhill, who was Hogarth’s painting teacher. William Hogarth was a great artist who made quality sketches like The Shrimp Girl (1740-43). He uses limited colors in his paintings. After his death in 1764 he was buried in Chiswick cemetery of London, which is now a museum.