Richard Phelps
Richard Phelps (1710-1785): A Portraitist of Somerset’s Gentry Richard Phelps was a singular figure in the artistic landscape of 18th-century England, primarily recognized for his meticulous portraiture and significant contributions to landscape design—particularly at Dunster Castle. Born around 1710, Phelps emerged from Porlock, Somerset, establishing himself as a respected artist whose career spanned decades and yielded an impressive body of work encompassing portraits, landscapes, and decorative commissions. His artistic journey began under the tutelage of Thomas Hudson and Sir Joshua Rey…
The Subject Atlas
A chart of Richard Phelps's corpus mapped not by date but by subject. Spokes are what they painted; rings are when; and the threads between stars reveal the patrons and places that secretly connect them.
Spokes — Subject
Each arm of the atlas gathers works by what they depict: portraits, sacred scenes, mythologies, and the scientific studies. Click a spoke to swing that cluster to the top.
Rings — Career Period
Distance from the center marks time. The innermost ring is the earliest period; the outermost, the final years. Style matures as you move outward.
Threads — Shared Context
Coloured lines link works bound by the same patron, commission, or theme. Trace a context to watch related clusters light up across subjects.
