William Grattan
William Grattan was born circa 1792, the younger brother of George Grattan. Strickland notes the "careful and laboured" nature of Grattan's work, which earned the artist a medal at the RDS Drawing School for four consecutive years, 1801-1804. He exhibited landscapes and figure subjects at the Artists' Exhibitions in Dublin between 1809 and 1812 and 1815. In 1818 he wrote and published a pamphlet, "Patronage Analysed," addressed to the "Royal Irish Institution for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts in Ireland." In this he concludes by saying: "The painters of this country, owing to the great want of patronage, are obliged to desert the higher walks of the profession for whatever employment in the arts the fleeting taste of the moment may proffer." www.whytes.ie