William Dunlap

He was also an artist, despite losing an eye in childhood. • Illustration — George Washington, painted in 1783 by William Dunlap during Washington's stay at Rockingham He was born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, the son of an army officer wounded at the Battle of Quebec in 1759. In 1783, he painted a portrait of George Washington, while staying at Rockingham in Rocky Hill. The painting is now owned by the United States Senate. He later studied art under Benjamin West in London.[1] Another teacher was Abraham Delanoy, with whom he had a handful of lessons in New York.[2] After returning to America in 1787, he worked exclusively in the theater for 18 years, resuming painting out of economic necessity in 1805. A few were original: these were based on American themes and had American characters. However, he is best known for his encyclopedic three-volume History of the Rise and Progress of the Arts of Design in the United States, which was published in 1834, and which is now an invaluable source of information about artists, collecting, and artistic life generally in the colonial and federal periods. His plays include: • The Father (1789) • The Archers (1798) • André (1798) • The Stranger (1798) • The Italian Father (1799) • False Shame (1799) • The Virgin of the Sun (1800) • The Glory of Columbia, Her Yeomanry (1803) • Memoirs of George Frederick Cooke (1813) • A Trip to Niagara (1828) In 1825, Dunlap was one of the founders of the National Academy of Design, and taught at its school. He published his History of the American Theater in two volumes in 1832.

The recorded working language is English. The field of work recorded is theatre, drama and theater management. Works named in the authority record are André. Work by William Dunlap is recorded in the collections of Metropolitan Museum of Art, Cleveland Museum of Art, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Detroit Institute of Arts and Dallas Museum of Art.

• Name — William Dunlap • Born — 19 February 1766 • Birthplace — Perth Amboy, New Jersey, British America • Died — 28 September 1839 • Place of death — New York, New York, United States • Education — Studied painting in London under Benjamin West • Occupation — Painter, playwright, historian • Employer — Park Theatre, New York City • Known for — Founded National Academy of Design • Notable Works — * André • History of the American Theatre • Spouse — Elizabeth Woolsey