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Lot Essay
Born in 1779 in Warwickshire, England, Thomas Birch moved with his family to the Philadelphia area at the age of fifteen. His education in painting was directed by his father, William Birch, a well-known landscape artist and enamel portraitist. Thomas’s interest in landscape and marine painting led him to devote his attention and career to the genre. In 1811, at “the first exhibition of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, [Brich] had established himself in the field of landscape and seascape painting…’ (W.H. Gerdts, Thomas Birch (Philadelphia, 1966), p. 12). A year later, Birch was appointed the Keeper or Curator of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and served in the position until 1817.
Birch achieved recognition for his portrayals of naval battles from the War of 1812 and views of Philadelphia. Unlike the dramatic naval scenes and landscapes with recognizable landmarks, the present portrait offers a romantic and idyllic seascape on shores of Delaware. The quiet scene shows fishermen casting their rods into the water with several ships docked ashore or moored nearby, with more vessels dotting the horizon line.
Birch achieved recognition for his portrayals of naval battles from the War of 1812 and views of Philadelphia. Unlike the dramatic naval scenes and landscapes with recognizable landmarks, the present portrait offers a romantic and idyllic seascape on shores of Delaware. The quiet scene shows fishermen casting their rods into the water with several ships docked ashore or moored nearby, with more vessels dotting the horizon line.