Portrait of John Martin, c.1816-20 (oil on panel)

John Martin (1789-1856); The 19th century artist John Martin spent his early years in the North East. He became famous for his large and spectacular pictures of destruction and crisis. These were painted with dramatic colour and lighting effects. His subjects were taken from the Bible, history and legend. Martin studied painting for a year with the Newcastle-based artist Boniface Muss. When he was seventeen, Martin moved to London, where he eventually established himself as an artist. The artist William Dixon was a portrait painter who worked in London and Newcastle.