Richard Norris Brooke

Born October 20, 1847, in Warrenton, Va. During the years 1865–71, studied at the Pennsylvania Academy with Edmund Bonsell and James R. Lambdin; taught at Mount Vernon Institute; Broad Street Military Academy; and Villa Nova College. Held the Chair of Fine Arts at VMI, 1871–72. Served as U.S. consul to La Rochelle, France, 1877-79. Studied with Léon Bonnat, 1878. Lived in Washington, D.C., 1880–1920. Began collecting art for Thomas E. Waggaman, 1882. Was a founder-instructor of the Art Students League of Washington, 1884. Visited Holland, Paris, London, and The Hague, 1887–92. Studied with Emile Carolus-Duran and Benjamin Constant, 1888. Was vice-principal and instructor at the Corcoran School of Art, 1902–17. Was chairman of the Medals and Badges Committee of the President's Inaugural Committee, 1909, 1913. Died April 25, 1920, in Warrenton, Va.

Andrew J. Cosentino and Henry H. Glassie The Capital Image: Painters in Washington, 1800–1915 (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press for the National Museum of American Art, 1983)