ROBERT WILLIAM BUSS - 19th century London artist
Self-portrait, circa 1850. ©
Not being one of the Royal Academicians of his day the name of R.W. Buss might easily have been forgotten were it not that:
- He was involved in a messy controversy over the early illustrations of The Pickwick Papers!
- His much admired painting, Dickens' Dream, hangs proudly in the Dickens Museum in London - with prints available for sale
- His daughter, Frances Mary Buss, became a pioneer for women's education and ensured the family name would be engraved in the history of education
- His family carefully preserved much of his work and made sure it was archived for the benefit of posterity
- His work was highly rated by the critics of his day and continues to receive favorable review
- The books he illustrated are now rare and valuable
- He has two huge murals on public display at the National trust property, Wimpole Hall in Cambridgeshire, England
- He has a very good, mostly accurate, listing in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
Never published before, Buss labeled this small study,
"My first etching." Even though he had technical problems etching to a deadline for Pickwick, Buss was later very successful with the etching needle.
R.W. Buss also deserves ongoing recognition because he represents the majority of the artists of his day - those who for sheer passion drew and painted because art was in every fiber of their being, and who provided affordable art to the nineteenth century middle classes.
A little background
This site is devoted to the rediscovery and publication of RWB's art. Many items are available for purchase, by request only, as limited edition gicleé digital prints, carefully restored from prints preserved by the artist himself.
Webmaster Michael Buss is a great- great- grandson of R.W. Buss. He is also working on a full biography of the artist. He now lives in southern California and may be forgiven for occasionally lapsing into the American vernacular or spelling!
Michael is always delighted to hear news of the
whereabouts of RWB's art. Email.