Palmer, Samuel (1805-1881), an English landscape painter and etcher, is best known for his mystical and imaginative pastoral scenes in water color. In 1824, Palmer met the visionary English poet William Blake (see Blake, William ). Blake had a decisive influence on Palmer’s best-known paintings. These works were landscapes that portrayed a deeply romantic beauty. Palmer painted these landscapes while living in Shoreham, a village in Kent. One of his best-known works is the drawing Valley Thick with Corn (1825). While living in Kent, Palmer became the major figure in a group of artists known as the Ancients. Like Palmer, this group of artists painted pastoral subjects in a romantic style. Beginning in the early 1830’s, Palmer painted more conventional and sentimental pictures that critics rank well below his work of the 1820’s.
Palmer was a highly regarded etcher, a medium he first adopted in 1850. Among Palmer’s best etchings are illustrations for the English poet John Milton’s poems “L’Allegro” and “Il Penseroso.”
Palmer was born on Jan. 27, 1805, in London. He first exhibited at the Royal Academy at the age of 14. Palmer died on May 24, 1881.
