Sir Joshua Reynolds was the most outstanding portraitist of the second half of 18th century. In December 1768 the Royal Academy was founded and Reynolds became its first president. He created a whole gallery of portraits of the most famous people of that period. He usually painted his characters in heroic sitter and showed them as the best people of the nation.

But the leading portraitist of his day was Thomas Lawrence. He became painter to George III in 1792 and president of the Royal Academy (1820-1830). Queen Charlotte is one of his finest portraits.

Thomas Gainsborough, one of the greatest representatives of the English school, was a portraitist and a landscape painter. His portraits are painted in clear tones. Blue and green are his favourite colours. One of the most famous works is the Portrait of the Duchess of Beaufort. He managed to create a true impression of the impressions. Gainsborough greatly influenced the English school of landscape masters. He was one of the first English artists to paint his native land (Sunset. The Bridge and others). He was the first English artist to paint his native countryside so sincerely. His works contain much poetry and music. He is sometimes considered the forerunner of the impressionists.

John Constable, an English landscape painter, painted many well-known works (A Cottage in a Cornfield, The Loch). He is the first landscape painter who considered that every painter should make his sketches directly from nature working in the open air. His technique and colouring are very close to the painting. Constable ignored the rules established by Reynolds. He insisted that art should be based on observation of nature and feeling. He was the herald of romanticism. But the realistic qualities of his art are sensed very strongly.

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