Joseph Wright was born the third son of John Wright, an attorney and Town Clerk of Derby (1756—65). He came from a solid, professional midle-class family and went to Deby Grammar School.
His formal training began in1751 as a pupil in Thomas Hudson’s studio in London. Hudson had a sound technique and boasted of many artists in his wide circle of acquaintances. He also had an extensive collection of prints and drawings which would have orovided a fine source of inspiration for his pupils.
After two years under Hudson, Wright returned to Deby, where he painted a number of portraits of family and friends. His Account Book of Sitters records of clients in Lincoln, Boston, Retford and Doncaster as well as Derby. However, he was always highly self-critical and returned to Hudson’s studio in 1756 and remained there for 15 months.
Following this second period at Hudson’s studio, he quickly established a flourishing portrait-painting practice. In 1765 he exhibited at the Society of Artists in London for the first time. It was at this time he started to develop his “Candle Light” paintings.
Among the most famous of these were “A Philosoper giving that Lecture on the Orrery, in which a lamp is put in theplace of the Sun”, which was exhibited at the Society of Artists’ show in 1766. This was followed, in 1768, by “An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump”.
His interest in the effect of single-source illumination for his paintings naturally led his to the drama of workshops which were springing up with the advent of the Undustrial Revolution. “The Blacksmiths’ Shops” and “Iron Forges” are good examples.
Between February 1774 and November 1775 he travelled extensively in Italy and was profoundly affected by the antiquities of Rome but, more interestingly, the pyrotecnics of Vesuvius and the Fireworks in Rome (La Girondola). He was also taken with the serene landscapes on northern Italian lakes — a theme he would return to in later life.
Although his principal source of commissions were portraits, his body of work is much wider than that. Indeed, a reviewer in the Gazetteer of 1768 wrote: “Mr Wright of Derby ia a very great and uncommon genius, in a peculiar way”!
