# Thomas Sully

American, 1783–1872; born in Horncastle, Lincolnshire; died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Sully was taken from England to America as a child by his actor parents and settled in Philadelphia in 1808. After brief study with Gilbert Stuart, he went to London, where he worked under Benjamin West and came under the influence of Thomas Lawrence. He became Philadelphia’s leading portraitist, known for graceful, flattering likenesses in a fluid manner. In 1838 he returned to London to paint the young Queen Victoria, the year after her accession.

_Written by Ochre Editions._

7 works in the collection.

- [Mother and Son](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/mother-and-son-met-12693), Thomas Sully, 1840. Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- [Musidora](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/musidora-met-12699), Thomas Sully, 1813–35. Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- [Queen Victoria](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/queen-victoria-met-14826), Thomas Sully, 1838. Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- [Abraham Kintzing](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/abraham-kintzing-nga-1129), Thomas Sully, 1815. Courtesy of National Gallery of Art, Washington.
- [Charles Carnan Ridgely](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/charles-carnan-ridgely-nga-32582), Thomas Sully, 1820. Courtesy of National Gallery of Art, Washington.
- [The Coleman Sisters](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/the-coleman-sisters-nga-33963), Thomas Sully, 1844. Courtesy of National Gallery of Art, Washington.
- [John Sergeant](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/john-sergeant-si-npg-npg-84-179), Thomas Sully, 1811. Courtesy of Smithsonian Institution.