Watson and the Shark(1778) by John Singleton Copley Critical Study

John Singleton Copley's interpretation of a horrifying disaster in Brooke Watson and the Shark stands out as a romanticised horror painting. Watson and the Shark, an oil on canvas painting, was completed in 1778 and belongs to the '18th Century American political' period. The painting is an oil on canvas and stands 182 cm tall and 230 cm wide. It can be found in the National Gallery of Art in Washington .The interpretation was inspired by an …

…a safe swimmming area ,nowadays we are familiar with the dangers of swimming in open water. We are also more knowledgable about the hardships and the slavery that many African-American people suffered during that period. Copley was born in Boston, he was a self-taught artist who established himself at a portraitist in the 1750's. The Fairmont Copley Plaza has been a landmark in Boston's historic Back Bay since 1912 and was named after John Singleton Copley.