# John Ellys

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For the English academic, see [John Ellys (Caius)](/source/John_Ellys_(Caius)). For other people with similar names, see [John Ellis](/source/John_Ellis_(disambiguation)).

**John Ellys** or **Ellis** (March 1701 – 14 September 1757) was an English portrait-painter.

## Life

Ellys was born in March 1701. When he was about fifteen years old, he was placed for instruction under [Sir James Thornhill](/source/Sir_James_Thornhill). After a short time he took instruction under Johann Rudolph Schmutz; he also remained under Schmutz only a short time. He subsequently became an imitator of [John Vanderbank](/source/John_Vanderbank) and was a student with [William Hogarth](/source/William_Hogarth) and others in the academy that [Louis Chéron](/source/Louis_Ch%C3%A9ron) and Vanderbank founded in October 1720 in [St Martin's Lane](/source/St_Martin's_Lane). After a few years Ellys and Hogarth succeeded to the directorship of this [St Martin's Lane Academy](/source/St_Martin's_Lane_Academy), and maintained their connection with it for about thirty years.

When he was still young Ellys obtained a warrant to copy pictures in the royal palaces for study, and copied several pictures by [Anthony van Dyck](/source/Anthony_van_Dyck), [Godfrey Kneller](/source/Godfrey_Kneller), [Peter Lely](/source/Peter_Lely), and others. Of the Kneller school of portrait-painting, he disliked the innovations of [Sir Joshua Reynolds](/source/Sir_Joshua_Reynolds). He eventually succeeded to Vanderbank's house and practice, and having already purchased from [Moses Vanderbank](/source/Moses_Vanderbank) a share of the place of tapestry-maker to the Crown, eventually obtained that position also. Ellys was consulted and employed by [Sir Robert Walpole](/source/Sir_Robert_Walpole) in the formation of his collection of pictures, and was sent to Holland to purchase from the [Princess of Friesland](/source/Princess_of_Friesland) *The Virgin and Angels* by Vandyck, which was subsequently held in the [Hermitage Gallery](/source/Hermitage_Gallery). For his services Walpole rewarded Ellys with the [sinecure](/source/Sinecure) of master keeper of the lions in [the Tower](/source/Tower_of_London), which Ellys retained until his death.

In October 1736 Ellys succeeded [Philip Mercier](/source/Philip_Mercier) as the principal painter to [Frederick, Prince of Wales](/source/Frederick,_Prince_of_Wales), He was a member of the committee of artists appointed in 1755 to frame a plan for constructing a royal academy, but he did not survive to see the result of their efforts, because he died on 14 September 1757. The [Royal Academy](/source/Royal_Academy) was established by royal decree in 1768.

## Works

A 1727 Ellys portrait of Lord Whitworth and his nephew was at [Knole](/source/Knole) in Kent. Many of his portraits were engraved by [John Faber the Younger](/source/John_Faber_the_Younger), including: [Lavinia Fenton, Duchess of Bolton](/source/Lavinia_Fenton,_Duchess_of_Bolton); [James Figg](/source/James_Figg) the pugilist; Frederick, Prince of Wales; [Henry Medley](/source/Henry_Medley); George Oldham; Lord Mayor [Humphrey Parsons](/source/Humphrey_Parsons); [William Wake](/source/William_Wake), archbishop of Canterbury; [Thomas Walker](/source/Thomas_Walker_(actor)), the actor, as Captain Macheath; [Robert Wilks](/source/Robert_Wilks) the actor, and [George Stanhope](/source/George_Stanhope), dean of Canterbury. The Stanhope portrait was also engraved by J. Sympson. Among engravings by other artists from Ellys's portraits were [Kitty Clive](/source/Kitty_Clive), by [John Tinney](/source/John_Tinney); [Sir Charles Wager](/source/Sir_Charles_Wager), by [George White](/source/George_White_(artist)); and [Edmund Gibson](/source/Edmund_Gibson), bishop of London, by [George Vertue](/source/George_Vertue).

## References

**Attribution**

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [John Ellys](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ellys) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ellys?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.