Farmingdale Public Library Local History Blog: William Sidney Mount

Press release from Farmingdale Public Library Local History Blog:

November 15, 2021

William Sidney Mount was born on November 26, 1807 in Setauket. He apprenticed as a sign painter to his brother, Henry Mount in New York City. In 1826, when the National Academy of Design opened drawing classes, Mount was one of its first students and was elected an associate member in 1831

In his early years, Mount primarily painted works with historical and literary themes. In 1829, the artist began to paint portraits and scenes from everyday life, or genre paintings. Mount’s scenes of rural life immediately became popular, both in the United States and abroad. His paintings often commented on American social and political issues. By the middle of the nineteenth century, he was one of the most renowned artists in America, with more commissions than he could fulfill. He sketched extensively in notebooks and painted plein-air oil sketches for several works, devising a studio-wagon in which he travelled over Long Island.

He played the violin and in fact produced his own type own fiddle for which he also acquired the copyright. He named it ‘Cradle of Harmony’. It produced a louder sound than that of an ordinary fiddle.

Mount never married, and died in Setauket on November 18, 1868.

Sources:

“William Sidney Mount.” Artist Info, https://www.nga.gov/collection...

“William Sidney Mount.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/bio...

“William Sidney Mount - Biography: American Artist.” Victorian Era, http://victorian-era.org/willi...

“William Sidney Mount: American Genre-Painter / Lim.” Art & Architecture Quarterly, 19 Feb. 2018, https://aaqeastend.com/content...

This press release was produced by Farmingdale Public Library Local History Blog. The views expressed here are the author’s own.