Wheeler, Thomas

Gender:

Male

Date and place of birth:

Unknown

Date and place of death:

Unknown

Worked:

(fl) c 1783-1810

Known places of work:

Windsor

Known techniques:

Cut paper

Known materials:

Paper

Frames:

Pearwood & pressed brass

Signature:

Recorded

Introduction:

Thomas Wheeler worked from the late 1700s to the early 1800s, appearing to have worked for an incredible 30 years. However, for such a long career, there are comparably few silhouettes attributed to him.

Relatively little is known about Thomas Wheeler’s background. It is thought that he spent most if not all of his working life in Windsor, and there is no current evidence to suggest he travelled elsewhere. There are four known trade labels for Wheeler, on which he advertises his work on glass and paper and his signature has been recorded. However, much of the work attributed to Wheeler is not signed and is without trade labels, identified by stylistic details. He seems to have favoured pearwood or pressed brass to frame his work.

Wheeler’s early work from c1783 was on thin card. In this, he used little gum Arabic and various depths of thinned pigment to show detail. Bust line terminations were a single arc or a shallow line. Wheeler was unique in painting the protrusion of the buffon at the back of profiles of ladies. This developed over time to terminate at the base, with a peak to show the sitter’s arm. Wheeler is also known for silhouettes on plaster, on which he again used lines of thinned pigment to portray fine detail. Unfortunately, there are no current examples of his work on glass. He is an increasingly popular artist, known for high-quality work.