Claude Phillips

Sir Claude Phillips (29 January 1846 – 9 August 1924) was a British writer, art historian and critic for The Daily Telegraph, Manchester Guardian and other publications during the late 19th century. He was the first keeper of the Wallace Collection at Hertford House, writing its first catalogue, and held that post from 1900 until his retirement in 1911 whereupon he was knighted for his service. Phillips was considered one of the most eminent critics in Victorian Britain, and his numerous scholarly and art history books were widely read.

Biography

The second son of Robert Abraham Phillips and Helen Levy, Claude Phillips was born at Gloster Villa, Regent's Park, London on 29 January 1846. He was educated in France and Germany prior to studying law at the University of London. He originally embarked on a career as a solicitor and was called to the bar in 1883. As a young barrister-at-law, he was often called to Italy on business and while there developed an interest in the arts.

Phillips eventually left the legal profession and became a music critic for The Daily Telegraph in the late 1880s. From 1885 to 1896, he was the English correspondent for the Gazette des Beaux-Arts in Paris. Among other Victorian era publications he wrote for included the Manchester Guardian, the Magazine of Art, the Academy and The Art Journal. Phillips became a widely known scholar in the field and later wrote several works on Joshua Reynolds, Antoine Watteau and Titian. One of his best known books was The Life of Sir Joshua Reynolds (1894).