Christina Robertson
Christina Robertson | |
|---|---|
 Self-Portrait,c. 1822, watercolour on ivory, 18.1 by 13 cm,Victoria and Albert Museum,London | |
| Born | Christina Saunders 17 December 1796 |
| Died | 30 April 1854 |
| Nationality | British |
| Known for | portrait painting |
| Spouse | James Robertson |
| Relatives | George Sanders(uncle) |
Christina RobertsonRSA(néeSaunders;17 December 1796 – 30 April 1854) was aScottishpainter generally remembered for her portraits ofRussian imperial family,representative ofAcademical tradition.She was the first woman honorary member of theRoyal Scottish Academy.
Life
[edit]Saunders was born inKinghorninFifein December 1796,[1]to parents who wished her to be educated.[2]She was trained by her uncle,George Sa(u)nders,who painted miniatures[2]and she launched into her career based at his house in London.[1]Saunders was a successful portrait painter and she rapidly established a flow of commissions initially from Scottish patrons for her miniatures but later for oil and watercolour paintings, earning more than her mentor.[2]By 1823 she was married to artist James Robertson but her art overshadowed his, and she was exhibiting at theRoyal Academyand by 1828 she had her own studio, perhaps the first woman to do so.[2]The following year she became the first honorary woman member of theRoyal Scottish Academy.[3][1]
During the 1830s, Robertson was travelling away from her family; although she gave birth to eight children, four of whom survived infancy.[2]She worked in Paris in the mid 1830s and met members of the Russian Court, who could have already seen her work as engravings in magazines,[2]and so she was tempted to join them in St Petersburg. There would have been more commissions than normal to replace the paintings lost in the fire that destroyed theWinter Palacein 1837. Saunders was in St Petersburg from 1839 to 1841 where she carried out full length painting ofTsar Nicholas I[2]andEmpress Alexandraand her three daughters -Maria,OlgaandAlexandra.In 1841 she was the first, and only woman,[2]to be made an honorary member, of theImperial Academy of Arts.[4][1]
She stayed in St Petersburg working as royal artist for ten years, although portraits of the imperial daughters-in-law were rejected in 1849. One of the sitters, Grand DuchessMaria Alexandrovnalater commissioned Robertson to paint her and her children, and the Empress chose her to paint an updated portrait of herself, in 1852.[2]
Some of Roberston's portraits were engraved by 1833 and they were included inThe portrait gallery of distinguished females including beauties of the courts of George IV and William IVwith memoirsbyJohn Burke.[5]
During theCrimean War,Robertson fell from both imperial favour; virtually obscure, she died inSaint Petersburg,[4]and is buried in theVolkovo Cemetery.[2]
Legacy
[edit]Robertson left dozens of paintings that are important if only because they record the portraits of historic figures, but many were thought to have been destroyed byBolsheviksin theRussian Revolution.[2]She is thought to be less well known than she might have been, due to the deterioration of the relationship between the British and Russian empires.[4]
Gallery
[edit]-
Children with Parrot,1850 -
Empress Alexandra Feodorovna,1840-41 -
William Fraser,1837 -
Portrait of Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna (Charlotte of Prussia), wife of Emperor Nicholas I,1852
References
[edit]
- ^abcdAlice Strang (26 November 2020)."Pioneering women at the Royal Scottish Academy".Art UK.Retrieved8 December2020.
- ^abcdefghijkMacPherson, Hamish (11 December 2022)."The story of the Scot who became an artist for the Russian Tsars".The National.Retrieved12 December2022.
- ^Elizabeth L. Ewan; Sue Innes; Sian Reynolds; Rose Pipes (8 March 2006).The Biographical Dictionary of Scottish Women.Edinburgh University Press. pp. 304–305.ISBN978-0-7486-2660-1.
- ^abcV. Remington, ‘Robertson, Christina (1796–1854)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004accessed 12 Oct 2015
- ^John Burke(ed. E. Bull) (1833)."The portrait gallery of distinguished females including beauties of the courts of George IV and William IV with memoirs".
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