John Sell Cotman (1782-1842) was an English landscape painter (mainly in watercolour) and etcher. He moved from Norwich to London in 1798, aged 16, and became a member of Dr. Monro's circle. As far as is known, he had no formal tuition in art, but by 1800 he was already accomplished enough to have six of his watercolours accepted for the annual Royal Academy exhibition.
Between 1800 and 1805 he made several sketching tours to Wales and Yorkshire and these resulted in some of his finest works. They did not bring him much success, however, and in 1806 he returned to his native city, where, together with Crome, he became the most important representative of the Norwich School. As well as depicting local scenery, he made several trips to France, which bore fruit in Architectural Antiquities of Normandy (1822), one of various books he illustrated with his etchings, which are now offered below.
In 1834 he moved to London to become professor of drawing at King's College, a position he held until his death. He was delighted to be offered the post, as he often had difficulty in making a living with his work and he was in debt at the time. Throughout his life he was also subject to periods of melancholia and despondency.
His sons, Miles Edward Cotman and John Joseph Cotman, also became painters of note.
[Refs: Adele M. Holcomb, John Sell Cotman, British Museum Publications, 1978;
The Oxford Dictionary of Art]