Who was Ann Forbes? Scotland's trailblazers, legends, creators and innovators

Ann Forbes (1745–1834) was a Scottish artist who was educated in Rome. In the eighteenth century, it was relatively unusual for a woman to be a professional artist. There were a few other women whose example Forbes looked to, such fellow Scot Katharine Read (1723-1778), and the Swiss painter Angelica Kauffman (1741-1807), but professional female artists were rare. Forbes traveled from Edinburgh to Rome where she studied with Scottish artists Gavin Hamilton and James Nevay, developing her skills in portraiture among the expatriate British community. However, Forbes’ experience of both learning and building a career was not without challenges. Watch here to find out more about how this determined artist carved out a professional career at a time when such an undertaking was not easy. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nationalgalleries/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/NatGalleriesSco Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/natgalleriessco/ Website: https://www.nationalgalleries.org/