gleton Copley's Paul Revere
Books with reproductions of Copley's painting Paul Revere
Cobblestone. Vol. 11, Number 6, June, 1990. "Paul Revere, Metalworker," pp. 12-15.
Good biographical reference for the teacher. Has full page black and white reproduction.
De la Croix, Horst, Richard G. Tansey, and Kiane Kirkpatrick. Gardner's Art Through the Ages, ninth ed., vol. II. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1991.
Color reproduction on p. 835.
Sullivan, Charles, ed. Imaginary Gardens: American Poetry and Art for Young People. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1989.
Full page color reproduction on p. 61.
Other Suggested Books
Benchley, Nathaniel. Sam the Minuteman. New York: Harper & Row, 1969.
An "I Can Read Book" illustrated with wonderful drawings by Arnold Lobel gives an authentic idea of what the experience was of a colonial New England minuteman.
Kalman, Bobbie. Colonial Crafts. New York: Crabtree, 1992.
Nice color photographs plus good explanation of the importance of the silversmith in colonial days. Students may be interested to know that, "In colonial times there were no banks in which people could put their silver coins. Instead of hiding the coins, people took them to a silversmith to be melted down into plates, spoons, and candlesticks, which were engraved so that people could identify them if they were stolen." (p. 21)
Background for Teacher
John Singleton Copley was born in 1738 in Boston, where his earliest portraits were painted. The most famous portrait painters of the time were those living in England who painted portraits of English aristocrats in the most elegant costumes possible, as a sign of their class standing. Copley was eager to study the methods of the English portraitists, which he did first through imported engravings. (An English mezzotint engraver named Peter Pelham settled in Boston in 1726 and eventually became Copley's stepfather. At the time, the main job of mezzotint engravers was making copies of famous paintings.)
By 1774, at the urging of Sir Joshua Reynolds and Benjamin West, Copley travelled to Europe and settled in England the following year. Copley spent the rest of his life in England and
was elected to the English Royal Academy, whose first president was Reynolds. Copley's paintings changed a great deal during the latter part of his life so that his Colonial realism became more adapted to the style of English portraiture. (Most people think that Copley's best portraits were the early ones done in America.) His Portrait of Paul Revere was painted between 1768 and 1770, before he left Boston. Copley died in 1815.
Show the students a color reproduction of the Copley painting and ask: What kind of a painting is this? (portrait) Does anyone know who the subject of the painting is? (Paul Revere) If no one knows, don't give the answer but ask the following questions: When do you think the subject of this portrait lived? (colonial times, 18th century, long ago) How can you tell? (clothing
more than anything else) Say: You have been studying the American Revolution in your history lessons this month, and that is exactly the time that this portrait was painted. From your studies, would you guess that the subject of this portrait is English or American? (Accept any observations the children may have. Again, the most obvious clue would be the simplicity of the clothing and of the hairstyle.)
Tell the students that the portrait was painted by an American painter named John Singleton Copley, and he painted it sometime between 1768 and 1770. Ask: Was that before, during, or just after the American Revolution? (shortly before) What clues does Copley give us about what the subject does to earn his living? (metal engraving tools, silver teapot) At this point, you may want to give the students another chance to guess the subject of the portrait. If you have access to biographical material about Paul Revere, read some of it to them.
They should know that Paul Revere was born into a family in which the father was an accomplished silversmith and a man who had immigrated to the Colonies to escape religious persecution 