Weir was born to Robert and Mary Katherine Brinckley (or Brinkley) Weir on June 18, 1803 in
New York City.[4] His father worked at mercantile and shipping jobs.[citation needed] His mother Mary is remembered for composing the song "The Lord of the Castle."[5] Robert never graduated from college, and he left a job as a mercantile clerk to pursue painting in 1821 at age 18. He studied art in New York City from 1822 to 1824, teaching himself drawing and painting before departing to study in Italy in 1824.[6] He remained in Florence from 1824 to 1825, then in Rome from 1825 to 1827, during which time he studied the works of
Michelangelo,
Raphael, and other Italian masters of the
Renaissance. He returned to New York in 1827 to care for a sick friend and remained there until 1834, becoming an integral part of its artistic community. He was appointed as Teacher of Drawing (1834–1846) then Professor of Drawing (1846–1876) at the
United States Military Academy at
West Point, New York.[2][7]
Weir was the fifth artist to hold the position of art instructor at the academy.[8] During his 42 years (1834–1876) in this post, he instructed many of the future commanders of the
American Civil War. Among his notable students at West Point were
James Abbott McNeill Whistler and
Seth Eastman. He also developed a special relationship with
Ulysses S. Grant.[7] He died in New York City on May 1, 1889.[8]
Weir was considered part of the
Hudson River School of American art. One of his best known paintings is The Embarkation of the Pilgrims which hangs in the
United States Capitol rotunda. He was commissioned by the
United States Congress in 1837 and the painting was placed in the rotunda in December 1843.[11] His canvases deal principally with historical subjects, though he also did several portraits.
Works
Paul Preaching at Athens
Two portraits of Sylvanus Thayer [Pappus, p. 210]
Embarkation of the Pilgrims at Delft Haven, Holland, July 22, 1620
Art and the empire city: New York, 1825-1861, an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Robert Walter Weir (see index)
Askart.com, io information retrieved December 14, 2007
Finding aid authors: Dennis Rowley and Loretta Trentman (2014). "
Weir family papers". Prepared for the L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Provo, UT. Retrieved May 16, 2016.