Arthur John Elsley

British 1860-1952

Arthur John Elsley was a painter of portraits and domestic genre subjects. He established his reputation as a painter of children and became popular for his scenes of sentimental genre. He was also a portraitist and painter of animals. His works are often compared to those of Frederick Morgan.

Works exhibited at the Royal Academy included “Castles in the Air”, “Don’t” and “Divided Affection”. Elsley often used his children and relatives as models for his paintings. The little girl with blond hair featured in many of his works was in fact his daughter. With their happy, carefree moods, Elsley’s paintings were often used for engraving and advertisements.

The combination of children with domestic animals is, for most collectors, an irresistible recipe. In the words of George Eliot, it is “a beauty with which you can never be angry, but that you feel ready to crush for inability to comprehend the state of mind into which it throws you”.