Francis Alexander | |
|---|---|
 Self-portrait, c. 1830 | |
| Born | February 3, 1800 |
| Died | March 27, 1880 (aged 80) |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Alexander Robertson |
| Known for | Portrait painter |
| Spouse | Lucia Grey |
Francis Alexander (February 3, 1800 – March 27, 1880)[1] was an American portrait-painter.
Alexander was born in Windham county Connecticut in February 1800. Brought up on a farm, he taught himself the use of colors, and in 1820 went to New York City and studied painting with Alexander Robertson.[2]
He spent the winters of 1831 and 1832 in Rome. Afterwards, he resided for nearly a decade in Boston, Massachusetts, where he had considerable vogue, and where he painted a portrait of Charles Dickens (1842).[2]
In 1840 he was elected to the National Academy of Design as an honorary member. Francis Alexander died in 1881 in Florence.[2]
Alexander married Lucia Grey Swett in 1836. Their daughter Francesca Alexander was a popular illustrator, author, and translator.[3]
One of Alexander's best portraits is that of Mrs. Fletcher Webster, formerly in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.[2] This romantic portrait, in which the sitter appears swathed in ermine, was deaccessioned from the Museum early in the 20th century and returned to descendants in the Sargent family.[citation needed]
