John Russell RA (March 29, 1745-April 20, 1806); English painter renowned for his portrait work in oils and pastels, and as a writer and teacher of painting techniques. Born in Guildford, Surrey, the son of John Russell Snr., book and print seller and 5 times mayor of the town; his father was something of an artist.... Russell was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford, and soon showed a strong inclination for art. He trained under Francis Cotes RA (of Cavendish Square, London), one of the pioneers of English pastel painting, and, like Cotes, was an admirer of the pastel drawings of Rosalba Carriera whose methods influenced his technique of "sweetening". At the age of 19 he converted to Methodism, which was the cause of tension with his family and with his teacher; he made no secret of his strong evangelical leanings and would attempt to preach and convert at every opportunity. Russell set up his own studio, in London in 1767. He made the acquaintance of the notorious Dr. William Dodd, whose portrait he painted in 1768. He was introduced to Selina, Countess of Huntingdon, who unsuccessfully attempted to persuade him to give up painting and attend her Methodist ministers' training college.... On 5 Feb. 1770, he married Hannah Faden, daughter of a Charing Cross print and map seller, whom he had converted. ....a man of deep religious beliefs, a devout follower of George Whitefield. ....Also interested in astronomy (he was a friend of Sir William Herschel), and made, with the assistance of his daughter, a lunar map, which he engraved on 2 plates which formed a globe showing the visible surface of the moon – it took 20 years to finish. He also invented an apparatus for exhibiting the phenomena of the moon, which he called "Selenographia". He was troubled by ill-health for much of his life and in 1803, became almost deaf following a bout of cholera. He died in Hull in 1806 after contracting typhus. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Russell_(painter)) undefined

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