Raphaelle Peale

Born in 1774 in Annapolis, Raphaelle Peale was the eldest son of Charles Wilson Peale (1741- 1827). The Peale family were a family of American painters and naturalists and Raphaelle Peale was the best painter of Charles Wilson Peale's seventeen children. He painted some very fine and austere still-lives, not at all Dutch in feeling but far closer to Spanish 17th century work. He was also a painter of miniature portraits and a master of trompe-l'oeil. During his career as a full-time artist, Raphaelle Peale attempted to run the Peale Museum, founded in 1786, with his brother Rembrandt. This was the family museum set up by Charles Wilson Peale but the brothers were a failure and Raphaelle eventually took to drink and died in 1825.