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Name
Gibson, John RA
Birth date
1790
Death date
1866
Biography
Gibson was born in North Wales, the son of a market gardener. The family moved to Liverpool when Gibson was nine, then five years later, aged fourteen, he was apprenticed to a sculptor named Lege, working for a Liverpool firm of statuaries. It was in Liverpool that he came to the attention of William Roscoe, the renowned collector, who commissioned a bas-relief from him. Gibson left for Rome in 1817 and spent the greater part of the remainder of his life there. He received encouragement and instruction from Canova and Thorwaldsen and went on to enjoy a successful and productive career. Gibson was elected a member of the Royal Academy in 1838.