He was disappointed in teachers and travels; swore himself never to marry and lived with his niece, whom he forced to devote herself to taking care of him; attended student classes in his forties. People gathered to watch him painting and called the artist Il Diavolo for his speed and accuracy; the English press condemned him for pictures considered immoral and pornographic; He produced one of the most accurate copies of the famous Titian painting regarded by his contemporaries as impossible to copy. This all is about the British artist William Etty (1787-1849), who worked in the genre of history painting, which dominated at that time.
Fig. 1. William Etty, self-portrait, 1823 (Wikipedia.org)
Fig. 2. A Young Woman Reclining on a Fur Rug (fineartamerica.com)
Fig. 3. Academic study of a male nude (fineartamerica.com)
Fig. 4. The Deluge (fineartamerica.com)
Fig. 5. Hero and Leander, 1829 (Wikipedia.org)
Fig. 6. The Three Graces (fineartamerica.com)
