Joseph Noel Paton
Joseph Noel Paton was a Scottish artist and poet, born on December 13, 1821, in Dunfermline, Fifeshire. He is primarily recognized for his painting, particularly in the Pre-Raphaelite style, focusing on mythological, religious, and allegorical themes. Paton began his artistic studies at the Royal Academy in London in 1843, where he gained acclaim for his fantasy paintings and won an award at the Westminster Hall competition in 1845. Alongside his painting career, he illustrated notable literary works, including those by Percy Bysshe Shelley and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
Paton’s literary contributions include his anonymous poetry collection, *Poems by a Painter*, published in 1861, and his second volume, *Spindrift*, released in 1867. Although he received recognition in the visual arts, his poetry was often viewed less favorably due to its archaic style. He served as a teacher at the Royal Scottish Academy and was knighted, becoming the Queen's Limner for Scotland in 1865. Paton passed away in Edinburgh on December 26, 1901, leaving behind a legacy in both painting and poetry, with his most notable poem reflecting on the tragic sinking of a ship in 1878.
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Subject Terms
Joseph Noel Paton
Fine Artist
- Born: December 13, 1821
- Birthplace: Dunfermline, Fifeshire, Scotland
- Died: December 26, 1901
- Place of death: Edinburgh, Scotland
Biography
Better known today for his painting than for his poetry, Joseph Noel Paton was born in Dunfermline, Fifeshire, Scotland, on December 13, 1821, the elder son of Joseph Neil and Catherine MacDiarmid Paton, weavers by trade. Paton’s skill at painting enabled him to study at the Royal Academy in London beginning in 1843, where he produced works in the Pre-Raphaelite style on mythological, religious, and allegorical subjects.
His fantasy or “fairy” paintings were well received, and in 1845, Paton won an award from the Royal Commission at the Westminster Hall competition. He also provided illustrations for editions of books such as Percy Bysshe Shelley’s Prometheus Unbound (1844) and Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1863). In 1858, Paton married Margaret Bloomhill Ferrier; the couple had eleven children over their forty-two-year marriage, which ended with her death in 1900.
Paton’s volume Poems by a Painter (1861) was published anonymously. While winning awards and fellowships for his painting, such as being knighted and being named the Queen’s Limner for Scotland in 1865, Paton was not as well regarded for his poetry, much of which was clumsily written in an artificially archaic style. Spindrift, his second collection, appeared in 1867 with a “fairy” illustration on the front cover; Paton also became a teacher that year at the Royal Scottish Academy. A third work, “A Christmas Carol,” was published in The New Amphion in 1886 and brought out posthumously as a pamphlet in 1907.
Although most of Paton’s poetry dealt with ancient or medieval subjects, his most famous poem, “The Last of the Eurydicé,” was taken from current events. It was written the day after the sinking of the British ship Eurydicé on March 24, 1878, “only an hour from home,” as Paton has it. Paton died in Edinburgh, Scotland, on December 26, 1901, soon after turning eighty years of age.