Original works of art

One of the earliest and most accomplished painters of dogs in mid nineteenth century America was Arthur Fitzwilliam Tait, and while for some he is best remembered as a wildlife artist, he also did many paintings of dogs. Considered by most, as an American artist, he actually was born in England in 1819, growing up on a farm near Liverpool, not moving to American until 1850, at the age of 31.

While little is known about his early work, he was largely self-taught and was obviously exposed to the important British artists of the day, including Edwin Landseer, whose work seems to have significantly influenced Tait.

Tait moved to America and after initially living in New York City, he established a home in Yonkers, where he died in 1905 at the age of 96. His most memorable work, however, was done in the Adirondacks where he moved in 1852, returning on a regular basis to New York. In 1854 he was elected an associate of The National Academy of Design and in 1858, he became a full member.

The National Academy of Design had been founded in 1826, by members of the New York Drawing Association which itself had been founded in 1825. The stated ideals of the Academy were for, “ ...the purpose of mutual improvement and the instruction of their pupils, and all others who wish to become students of the Arts and Design.” The National Academy also held annual exhibitions, the first in 1826 and annually thereafter throughout the nineteenth century.

In the Adirondacks, Tait came to specialize in animal paintings, and especially sporting subjects. He painted scenes of sportsman camping out, hunting scenes, fishing scenes, portraits of wild animals, especially white-tailed deer, and of course sporting dogs. He also later included domestic farm animals as well as some large scale depictions of the American west, although they were not done from life, as he never actually traveled to the west.

Like his predecessor in England, Edwin Landseer, Tait was able to popularize his work through prints and many of his compositions were reproduced as prints by Currier and Ives of New York.