George Morland

George Morland (1763 – 1804) is best known for his rural scenes and landscapes, inspired by the art of the Dutch Golden Age. Morland attained widespread popularity through the dissemination of engravings of his work.

Morland was born in London, the son of Henry Morland, also an artist, who recognised his precocious talent and encouraged his drawing, as a way to restore the family fortunes. Morland was an honorary exhibitor of sketches at the RA in 1773, at the age of ten. He was subsequently apprenticed to his father from 1777 to 1784. Romney invited him to join his studio at this time, but he chose instead to enrol at the RA Schools, although his attendance was erratic, as, while very gifted, he was also naturally dissolute, which, ultimately, led to his premature death.
He was astonishingly prolific, in many cases to keep his creditors at bay, as a result of which the quality of his later work deteriorated, while some of his paintings were completed by lesser hands.

Morland first specialised in smaller paintings, typically of sentimental genre or childhood subjects, aping the style of Francis Wheatley (1747 – 1801). In the 1790s, a period when he produced some of his best work, he began painting larger rustic scenes and pictures of smugglers and wreckers, the latter showing the influence of Philippe de Loutherbourg (1740 – 1812). Morland regularly exhibited at the RA from 1784 until his death.

Morland’s work can be seen in many museums in the United Kingdom.

Additional Information
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Government Art Collection
Royal Academy
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