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- John Skinner Prout
- Also known as
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John Skinner Prout
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primary name: Prout, John Skinner
- Details
- individual; painter/draughtsman; British; Australian; Male
- Life dates
- 1805-1876
- Biography
- Painter and printmaker, born in Plymouth, active in Britain and Australia, nephew of Samuel Prout (q.v.). During the 1830s toured the west of England, and published "Castles and Abbeys of Monmouthshire" in 1838; in that year elected to the New Society of Painters in Water-Colours (re-elected as an associate in 1849 and full member in 1862). 1840, travelled to Australia where he became one of the most important artists of the period and drew public attention to the fine arts with two series of lectures at the Mechanics' Institute, Sydney. 1843, moved to Hobart, Tasmania; founded an art school and, with G. T. W. B. Boyes (1787-1853), organized Tasmania's first art exhibition in 1845. Imported a lithographic press from England; publications included "Sydney Illustrated" (1844), "Tasmania Illustrated" (1844-6), and "Views of Melbourne and Geelong" (1847). 1848, returned to England, living in Bristol and London and continuing to produce paintings of Australian scenery and writing on Australia.
- Bibliography
- R.K.Engen, 'Dictionary of Victorian Wood Engravers,' 1985
V.W. Hodgman, 'Prout, John Skinner (1805-1876)' Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, Melbourne University Press, 1967, pp 353-354.
