Richard Ansdell (11 May 1815 – 20 April 1885) was an English oil painter of animals and scenes. He was born in Liverpool, the son of Thomas Griffiths Ansdell and Anne Jackson. His father died young and Richard was educated at the Bluecoat School for orphans. In the 1821 Gore's Directory of Liverpool Anne Ansdell's address was 27 Old Hall Street, with the occupation of milliner. The 1825 and 1827 directories give her address as 12 Mill Street. He first exhibited at the Liverpool Academy in 1835, becoming a student there the following year. His animal and rural subjects proved to be popular and he soon attracted wealthy patrons. His first exhibition at the Royal Academy, London, was in 1840, with two paintings called "Grouse shooting" and "A Galloway Farm". Thereafter he enjoyed continuing success and fame as an artist exhibiting at the Royal Academy every year between 1840 and 1885. In June 1841, he married Maria Romer, the couple spending their early married years at 48 Seel Street L1 . They went on to have 11 children, moving in 1847 to live in Kensington, London, eventually living in a large house called Lytham House after his beloved Lytham St. Annes in Lancashire where he also had a sizeable residence called Starr Hills. Nowadays the area of the town around Starr Hills is called ‘Ansdell' after him – as is a street in Kensington. He is buried in Brookwood Cemetery, Surrey. |
The three pictures show how 48 Seel Street was resurrected from a state of dilapidation into a house properly reflecting its Georgian origins.
© Liverpool Footprints