Another of Horsley's main claims to fame is that his sister, Mary married Isambard Kingdom Brunel 1806-1859, the greatest of Victorian engineers.

Horsley was a member of the Cranbrook artists colony in Kent. His first exhibit at the Royal Academy was 'Rent Day at Haddon Hall in the days of Queen Elizabeth,' in 1839. The success of this picture established Horsley's career as an artist. Most of Horsley's paintings involved pretty women, in pleasant surroundings. His work was highly finished, and skilfully painted however. He was the Rector of the Royal Academy from 1875 to 1890.

Horsley really made his name, and established his position historically in a very novel way. In an age famous for hypocrisy and prudery, John Calcott Horsley was a leading candidate to be the greatest prude of all! Horsley objected to painting from life classes, and to paintings of the nude. His fearless exploits in this area, led to his being known as 'Clothes Horsley,' and having to endure a degree of ridicule he probably deserved.

On the 25th May, 1885 a letter appeared in The Times. The letter, entitled 'A Woman's Plea,' and signed 'A British Matron,' was in fact written by Horsley. In those far- off days, a century before The Times was trashed and trivialised by Rupert Murdoch, it's position as the voice of what we now know as the establishment was unchallenged. Horsley's letter certainly struck a chord with various other rather strange people, and a number of letters were received sympathetic to it, including one from a member of' The Church of England Purity Society.' Horsley followed this letter, with another rather more moderate one signed 'H.' Finally Horsley attacked again at a Church of England Congress in October of the same year. He was particularly offended women painting from life. It would seem that women students would be corrupted by seeing the naked body of another woman! Horsley had invited and received ridicule, including the famous Linley Sambourne cartoon ' The Model British Matron,' showing him as the corseted Matron disgusted by the Medici Venus. In these days where any kind of triviality and sexual explicitness is the accepted norm, perhaps it is well-worth remembering this kind of absurd prudery, the reaction against which did much to bring us to the present equally unbalanced situation.

An important source of information for this short biography was ' The Victorian Nude.' Sexuality, morality and art by Alison Smith, published by Manchester University Press in 1996. I highly recommend this book, as an aid to putting Victorian Art in a wider social context.

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