Background
He was the son of Gideon "George" Slous (1777–1839), a Flemish portrait and miniature painter, and a pupil of John Martin who was an important and influential English painter of the 19th century.
(This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of th...)
This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1169594565/?tag=2022091-20
He was the son of Gideon "George" Slous (1777–1839), a Flemish portrait and miniature painter, and a pupil of John Martin who was an important and influential English painter of the 19th century.
He was an occupant of Keats House in Hampstead, from 1835 to 1838. In 1818 Selous entered the Royal Academy Schools and also exhibited his first work, a Portrait of a Favourite Cat, location untraced, at the Academy. He submitted animal portraits for the next three years before embarking on human portraiture.
His early works were exhibited under the name "Slous", but at sometime between 1831 and 1838 he adopted the name "Selous".
In the 1840s he began to paint historical subjects, initially inspired by the renewed interest in history painting prompted by the New Palace of Westminster cartoon competition for the designs of frescoes on the new building in 1843. He was aided by the knowledge of mural technique he had acquired by working for a panorama painter.
Despite the prize, the picture was criticised by one reviewer because the "violence of the action and dashing lights carry us away like the speech of a mob orator.".
(This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of th...)