John Webber

John Webber (6 October 1751 – 29 May 1793) was an English artist who accompanied Captain Cook on his third Pacific expedition. He is best known for his images of Australasia, Hawaii and Alaska.

Biography Webber was born in London, educated in Bern and studied painting at Paris. His father was Abraham Wäber, a Swiss sculptor who had moved to London, and changed his name to Webber before marrying a Mrs Mary Quant in 1744.

Webber served as official artist on James Cook's third voyage of discovery around the Pacific (1776–1780) aboard .

Collections The Anchorage Museum of History and Art (Alaska), the Museum of the Aleutians (Alaska), the Bishop Museum (Honolulu), the Honolulu Museum of Art, the Peabody Essex Museum (Salem, Massachusetts), the Yale University Art Gallery, the British Museum, the Sir John Soane's Museum (London), The National Maritime Museum (London), the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa , the John Carter Brown Library, and the Mitchell Library (Australia) are among the public collections holding works by John Webber.

Australia Webber's art is held by a number of Australian institutions including the National Portrait Gallery (William Bligh, c.1776, The Death of Captain Cook (engraving), 1784, and Portrait of Captain James Cook RN, 1782); the Australian National Maritime Museum (View of Huaheine, 1784); the Art Gallery of New South Wales (A View in Otaheite Peha, 1785); the National Library of Australia (includes Sea Otter, 1778, A Woman of Pulo Condore, 1780, Portrait of Captain John Gore, 1780, Poedua, Daughter of Orea, King of Ulietea, Society Islands, 1782, Portrait of Captain James King, 1782, A Dance in Otaheite, 1784, A Woman of Van Diemen's Land, 1784, A Chief of the Sandwich Islands, 1787, and The Resolution Beating Through the Ice, 1792, ); the Dixson Library (includes An Opossum of Van Diemen's Land, 1777, Red-tailed Tropic Bird, 1777, and The Death of Captain Cook, c.1781–83. ); and the National Gallery of Victoria (A Night Dance by Men, in Hapaee, 1784, A Young Woman of the Sandwich Islands, 1784, and A Man of Van Diemen's Land, 1784. ).

Works