Early Life
Westall was born in Hertford, England, but grew up in London, mostly Sydenham and Hampstead. The son of brewery manager Benjamin Westall and his second wife Martha nee Harbord, William Westall had four step-siblings, the eldest of whom, Richard Westall, was a reputable painter and illustrator. William was interested in painting from a young age; Rienitz and Rienitz (1963) suggest that he looked up to his half-brother, and was ambitious to follow in his footsteps. There is evidence to suggest that Westall's parents did not support this career choice; however Richard became head of the family upon the death of Benjamin Westall in March 1794, and must have approved Westall's artistic ambitions, as from that time forward William Westall was given a thorough art education. At the age of sixteen he won a silver palette in a competition run by the Society of Artists, and at eighteen was enrolled at the prestigious Royal Academy.
Read more about this topic: William Westall
Famous quotes containing the words early and/or life:
“I doubt that I would have taken so many leaps in my own writing or been as clear about my feminist and political commitments if I had not been anointed as early as I was. Some major form of recognition seems to have to mark a woman’s career for her to be able to go out on a limb without having her credentials questioned.”
—Ruth Behar (b. 1956)
“Children became an obsessive theme in Victorian culture at the same time that they were being exploited as never before. As the horrors of life multiplied for some children, the image of childhood was increasingly exalted. Children became the last symbols of purity in a world which was seen as increasingly ugly.”
—C. John Sommerville (20th century)