Cox, David (1783-1859)

Cox, David

PAINTER (ENGLAND)

BORN 29 Apr 1783, Birmingham, West Midlands: Heath Mill Lane, Deritend - DIED 7 Jun 1859, Birmingham, West Midlands
GRAVE LOCATION Birmingham, West Midlands: St. Peter's Church, Old Church Road, Harborne (Churchyard)

David Cox was the son of a blacksmith. He took drawing lessons with Joseph Barber and learned painting portrait miniatures from a certain Fiedler. After this Fiedler committed suicide he assisted the scene painter De Maria at the Birmingham theatre.

He moved to London and there he married Mary Egg, his landlord's daughter. They went to Dulwich in 1808 and in the same year he started watercolour painting. He frequently exhibited at the Royal Academy but had to work as a drawing master because his works fetched relatively low prices. In 1810 he became the President of the Associated Artists in Watercolour.

He moved to Hereford to work as a drawing master. Between 1823 and 1826 Joseph Murray was his pupil. In 1826 he travelled to The Netherlands and Belgium and he settled in London afterwards. Until 1840 he lived in Hereford and London. In 1840 he returned to Birmingham where he lived in Harborne.

In 1853 he suffered a stroke, but in 1855 his watercolours were present at the Universal Exhibition in Paris. By 1857 his eyesight failed him. A retrospective exhibition was held in 1859 at the German Gallery in Bond Street, London. He died during the same year and was buried under a chestnut tree in St. Peter's Churchyard in Birmingham. His work can be seen in the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and other important museums.

Images
The grave of David Cox at St. Peter's Churchyard, Harborne, Birmingham. Picture by Androom (20 Oct 2012)	Window dedicated to David Cox at St. Peter's Churchyard, Harborne, Birmingham. Picture by Androom (20 Oct 2012)	Plaque beneath the window dedicated to David Cox at St. Peter's Churchyard, Harborne, Birmingham. Picture by Androom (20 Oct 2012)