Briton Rivière (1840 - 1920)

Briton Rivière

Briton Rivière is a British animal painter.

Briton received his first painting education at Cheltenham College, London, where his father was a teacher. From the very beginning, he took particular pleasure in painting dogs, which he apparently adored. Riviere managed to convey the character, emotions and feelings of animals: dogs, sad for their dead owners or protecting children - these subjects made the audience empathize with what is happening in the picture. When Rivière moved to London, he often went to the zoo and studied the behavior of lions and bears, and then depicted them in his historical paintings or in the wild.

Riviere's art was a success and his paintings were regularly exhibited at the Royal Academy. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Arts in 1878 and a Royal Academician in 1881.