WATTS INDEXThe canonical database of visual culture

Artists›Benjamin West

Benjamin West

1738

WA-00116464

PaintingRomanticism

Representation

None documented

Institutional Exhibitions

Works in Collection

Assets Indexed

Authority-backed Facts

Publications Referenced

60%

Profile Completeness

Cultural Positioning

Influence Graph

No influence edges encoded yet.

Authority Records (1)

Smithsonian

Field Verification (3 fields)

1 cross-verified · 2 single-source

Birth yearArtsy· 85%✓
LocationArtsy· 85%
NationalityArtsy· 85%

Source Registry (1)

Smithsonianhttps://www.si.edu/object/npg_NPG.77.34
Tier 1 · Institutional90%

About

Why this artist matters now

Benjamin West was an American-born British painter who specialised in history painting, creating such works as The Death of Nelson, The Death of General Wolfe, the Treaty of Paris, and Benjamin Franklin Drawing Electricity from the Sky.

Source: Smithsonian Institution · Trust score: 90% · Updated 1mo ago

Graph relationships

Taste overlap and adjacency

Movement

Romanticism

Medium

Painting

Related Artists

12 in graph

Canonical record

Artworks (22)

The Angel at the Tomb of Christ

1809 · Pen and iron-gall ink on white laid paper

4 1/2 x 3 3/4 in. (11.4 x 9.5 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Specimens of Polyautography: The Angel at the Tomb of Christ

1801 · lithograph

Cleveland Museum of Art

Moses Shown the Promised Land

1801 · Oil on wood

19 3/4 x 28 3/4 in. (50.2 x 73 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

British Manufactory; A Sketch

1791 · oil on paper mounted on wood

Framed: 67.4 x 80 x 5.2 cm (26 9/16 x 31 1/2 x 2 1/16 in.); Unframed: 51 x 65 cm (20 1/16 x 25 9/16 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

The Expulsion of Adam and Eve from Paradise

1791 · Oil on canvas

48.6 × 72.9 cm (19 1/8 × 28 11/16 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Portrait of a Man

1790 · Oil on canvas

127 × 102 cm (50 × 40 1/8 in.); Framed: 152.4 × 128.3 × 11.5 cm (60 × 50 1/2 × 4 1/2 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

The Damsel and Orlando

1790 · Oil on canvas

36 x 28 in. (91.4 x 71.1 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Head of a Screaming Man (recto)

1787 · black crayon

Sheet: 32.3 x 40.7 cm (12 11/16 x 16 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Head of a Screaming Man (recto); Woman and Man Playing Cards (verso)

1787 · black crayon

Sheet: 32.3 x 40.7 cm (12 11/16 x 16 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Woman and Man Playing Cards (verso)

1787 · black crayon

Sheet: 32.3 x 40.7 cm (12 11/16 x 16 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Study for "Alexander III, King of Scotland, Saved from a Stag by Colin Fitzgerald"

1784 · Pen and brown ink, brown ink washes, black chalk, and graphite on off-white (now oxidized) laid paper.

13 5/8 x 20 1/8 in. (34.6 x 51.1 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Queen Philippa at the Battle of Neville's Cross

1784 · Oil on canvas

39.1 × 52.7 cm (15 3/8 × 20 3/4 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

George III

1783 · oil on canvas

Framed: 152 x 127 x 9.5 cm (59 13/16 x 50 x 3 3/4 in.); Unframed: 126.5 x 101 cm (49 13/16 x 39 3/4 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

Hagar and Ishmael

1776 · Oil on canvas

76 x 54 1/2 in. (193 x 138.4 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Christus zegent de kinderen

1776 · chalk, paper

width: 227 cm, height: 136 cm

Rijksmuseum

Fan

1775 · Ivory guards and sticks, carved; paper mount, painted; gold leaf; metal pin with mother-of-pearl

28.8 × 50.4 cm (11 1/4 × 19 11/16 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

The Death of Procris

1770 · Oil on panel

32.4 × 41.2 cm (12 3/4 × 16 1/4 in.); Framed: 41.6 × 50.8 × 5.1 cm (16 3/8 × 20 × 2 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Alexander's Confidence with his Physician Philip

1769 · Brush and brown and black wash, with tan gouache, heightened with white gouache, with incising, on ivory laid paper, laid down on ivory laid card

Primary support: 21.8 × 30 cm (8 5/8 × 11 13/16 in.); Secondary support: 30.1 × 36.9 cm (11 7/8 × 14 9/16 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Elizabeth Shewell West and Her Son, Raphael

1765 · oil on canvas

Framed: 88 x 87.5 x 9 cm (34 5/8 x 34 7/16 x 3 9/16 in.); Unframed: 66.5 x 66.3 cm (26 3/16 x 26 1/8 in.)

Cleveland Museum of Art

St. Paul Shaking off the Viper

1758 · Pen and brown ink with brush and tan wash, on cream laid paper with blue fibers tipped onto cream wove paper

30.4 × 37.6 cm (12 × 14 13/16 in.)

Art Institute of Chicago

Scene at Margate

1738 · Pen, brown ink, and white chalk on blue laid paper

4 1/2 x 7 in. (11.4 x 17.8 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Turkey

1738 · Pen and brown ink on wove paper

4 11/16 x 3 1/4 in. (11.9 x 8.3 cm)

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

View all 22 artworks →

Artwork sources (4)

22 published of 22 catalogued · 22 with image

Cleveland Museum of Art
7 published7 img
Art Institute Chicago
7 published7 img
The Met
7 published7 img
Rijksmuseum
1 published1 img

Per-Artwork Provenance Chains (top 8)

8 entries · 1 sources

Christus zegent de kinderen
1776 · Rijksmuseum · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Elizabeth Shewell West and Her Son, Raphael
1765 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Head of a Screaming Man (recto); Woman and Man Playing Cards (verso)
1787 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
British Manufactory; A Sketch
1791 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Specimens of Polyautography: The Angel at the Tomb of Christ
1801 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Head of a Screaming Man (recto)
1787 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
Woman and Man Playing Cards (verso)
1787 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number
George III
1783 · Cleveland · 1 prov
Url Pattern Extraction 2026-05-27·accession_number

Record

Images

Artsy

Relationships

Movements1

Romanticism

Record

Exhibitions and timeline

No exhibitions or timeline entries yet