Biography from Roger King Fine Art, A - G:
| James Buttersworth was born in Middlesex County, England. He is
presumed to be the son of painter Thomas Buttersworth (1768-1842),
though little is known about him before he emigrated to the United
States.
He settled in West Hoboken, New Jersey about 1850 and enjoyed a
flourishing career as a marine painter. New York Harbor provided
the background for a great number of his works. He went to work
for Nathaniel Currier in 1847, and when the firm later became Currier
and Ives, many of his paintings were made into prints.
From 1850 to 1852 he sold his work through the American Art Union in
New York. His career spanned sixty years, and about 600 of his
paintings have been recorded. He painted America's Cup races as
well as warships and historic naval actions, and all types of vessels
from racing clipper ships and yachts to steamers. He was particularly
adept at capturing the grace, majesty and movement of sailing vessels,
frequently portraying them from the diagonal and thus underscoring the
sense of rapid movement.
Using primarily oil paint, he applied in thinly to the ground, which
was usually canvas but also occasionally millboard, wood panel, or
metal. He had an eye for meticulous detail and he portrayed ships
with great accuracy, but he also achieved a Romantic sense of drama
with the use of low horizon lines, stormy skies, and tempestuous water.
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Biography from AskART:
| Known for marine paintings from subjects he observed in the waters off
New York, James Buttersworth lived long enough to depict the early
steamship era. His career spanning sixty years was dedicated to
portraits of all types of ships at sea such as racing clipper ships,
steamers, and yachts. Nearly 600 of his paintings have been
found, and his contribution in preserving this colorful chapter in
American history is profound.
His special skill was portraying
the majesty, grace, and movement of sailing vessels, and viewers have a
strong sense of being pulled along because of the curves and flow he
conveyed in his wind-filled sails.
He applied paint thinly,
primarily in oil, and used a variety of grounds including canvas,
milkboard, wood panels, and metal. A meticulous draftsman,
Buttersworth had an eye for exact detail, and painted clipper ships and
great sailing yachts as well as historical conflicts with
battleships. The paintings are usually made dramatic by stormy
skies and churning ocean waves.
He was born in Middlesex
County, England, and it is thought that his grandfather was Thomas
Buttersworth, 1768-1828, and his father Thomas Buttersworth, Jr,
1797-1842, both renowned marine painters. Although his heritage
is unproven, it is obvious James Buttersworth was well schooled in the
tradition of English marine painting.
Between 1845 and 1847,
he emigrated to the United States and settled in Hoboken, New Jersey,
and little is known of him before that time. He brought many of
his paintings with him from England to sell, and Currier and Ives
company purchased some of them to convert into lithographs. He
benefited from the wide exposure this association gave his work.
Another
break came when he exhibited and sold paintings through the American
Art Union from 1850 to 1852 in New York City, and, as a result, was
commissioned to make a series of drawings for the yacht race of 1851 in
England.
He supported a large family and lived in West Hoboken,
New Jersey with a view of the New York harbor. He prowled the water in
a small boat, which is obvious because his perspectives are that of
being on the water.
Sources include:
American Art Review and Magazine Antiques
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James Buttersworth is also mentioned in these AskART essays:
Illustrators
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