Joseph Farington (1747-1821) was a professional topographical artist and lived most of his life in London. Through his extensive involvement in the affairs of the Royal Academy, his wide circle of friends, and his membership in several clubs and societies, he touched the life of his time at many points. This diary, which he kept from 1793 until his death, provides a meticulous record of his actions and observations and is an invaluable source for the history of English art and artists. It also constitutes an absorbing record of this period’s social, political, and literary developments. These first two volumes cover the time from July 31, 1793, when he visited Horace Walpole at Strawberry Hill, to August 31, 1796. Apart from recording his constant involvement in Academy business, he describes his visit to Valenciennes and his sketching tour for the History of the River Thames. Such matters as the sale of part of Sir Joshua Reynolds’s collection, the controversies over the Shakespeare forgeries are set down against the background of the French Revolution and the war, and of political turbulence at home. The diary is now for the first time published in full. The unannotated text will be published in successive volumes with a full index and a final volume, A Companion to The Farington Diary, to follow.

The Diary of Joseph Farington: Volume 1, July 1793-December 1974, Volume 2, January 1795-August 1796 (Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art)

Farington, Joseph

Biographies & Memoirs

Paul Mellon Centre

Farington Diary

Memoirs

Yale University Press

Joseph Farington (1747-1821) was a professional topographical artist and lived most of his life in London. Through his extensive involvement in the affairs of the Royal Academy, his wide circle of friends, and his membership in several clubs and societies, he touched the life of his time at many points. This diary, which he kept from 1793 until his death, provides a meticulous record of his actions and observations and is an invaluable source for the history of English art and artists. It also constitutes an absorbing record of this period’s social, political, and literary developments. This second pair of volumes covers the period in which Farington’s influence within the Royal Academy was at its height and he earned the title of ‘dictator of the Royal Academy.’ These years where characterized by artistic controversy over such matters as the eligibility of architects for membership, the expulsion of James Barry from his position as Professor of Painting and then from the Academy itself, and the alleged destructiveness of James Wyatt’s restoration of Durham Cathedral. Farington immersed himself in these and other artistic matters ranging from the campaign for the establishment of a national gallery to his budding friendships with the young Turner and the young Constable.

The Diary of Joseph Farington: Volume 3, September 1796-December 1798, Volume 4, January 1799-July 1801 (Studies in British Art)

Joseph Farington (1747-1821) was a professional topographical artist who lived most of his life in London. Through his extensive involvement in the affairs of the Royal Academy, his wide circle of friends, and his membership in several clubs and societies, he touched the life of his times at many points. His diary, now for the first time being published in full, is an invaluable source for the history of English art and artists. In this third pair of volumes, the chief interest is provided by Farington’s account of his visit to Paris, in company with Fuseli, during the Peace of Amiens in 1802. West, Opie, Flaxman, Hoppner, and Turner were among the other English artists who visited Paris at the same time, as did Charles James Fox and his followers. Farington provides much material on French art and artists, notably on David and his pupils, and on the works of art looted from other parts of Europe, especially from Italy, which were on view in the Louvre. There are vivid descriptions of Napoleon and of the atmosphere of Paris during the Consulate. During these years Farington also undertook tours of the Lake District, Scotland, and the Wye valley. He portrays in detail the pre-Regency society of these years, ranging from the small change of gossip and social life to the serious matters of art and politics.

The Diary of Joseph Farington: Volume 5, August 1801-March 1803, Volume 6, April 1803-December 1804 (Studies in British Art)

The Diary of Joseph Farington: Volume 7, January 1805 - June 1806, Volume 8, July 1806 - December 1807

Joseph Farington (1747-1821) was a professional landscape and topographical artist. Through his involvement in the affairs of the Royal Academy and his wide circle of friends he was well-informed about the affairs of his day. His diary, which he kept meticulously from 1793 until his death, was published by Yale University Press in 16 volumes between 1978 and 1984. It comprises not only a detailed record of his actions and observations as a figure in the London art world but is also a record of the social, political and literary developments of the period. The index volume provides access to Farington's fascination with criminal trials, elections and frequent Royal scandals of the day as well as the recurrent subject of the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars in Europe.

The Diary of Joseph Farington: Volume 7

The Diary of Joseph Farington: Volume 8

The Diary of Joseph Farington: Volume 10

The ninth and tenth volumes of the diary cover the years from January 1808 up to December 1810. Among the public events that preoccupy Joseph Farington are the wars in Europe and South America and the spectacular scandal that erupted in 1809 over Duke of York’s association with Mary Anne Clark. This period finds Farington embarking on extended tours―one to the north of England and two to the West Country―making sketches to illustrate the survey of Britain, Britannica Depicta, compiled by his friends Samuel and Daniel Lysons. Farington’s association with this and other projects for the publishers Cadell and Davies involves him in negotiations with many engravers, among them Joseph Landseer, James Heath, and Samuel Middiman. Within the Royal Academy (to which Landseer is pressing that a number of engravers be admitted) feelings run high over the lecture by John Soane criticizing the architecture of Covent Garden Theatre, which was the work of Robert Smirke, the son of Farington’s oldest friends. At the end of 1810 Farington is occupied with assessing Robert Smirke’s prospects at the coming election of academicians. In common with many others in the diarist’s wide circle of acquaintances, Thomas Lawrence and John Constable continue to seek Farington’s advice on professional and practical affairs. Published for the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art.

The Diary of Joseph Farington: Volume 9, January 1808 - June 1809, Volume 10, July 1809 - December 1810 (Studies in British Art)

The Diary of Joseph Farington: Volume 9

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