Sir William Quiller Orchardson was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. He showed his first painting at the Royal Scottish Academy in 1848. His early work included literary subjects from Shakespeare, Sir Walter Scott and Charles Dickens. He moved to London in 1862, where he exhibited paintings at the Royal Academy, the British Institution and Grosvenor Gallery. In his later work he turned to psychological dramas in upper-class life. Using deliberately muted colors, his technique was refined and distinctive. Orchardson was elected A.R.A. in 1868, and honorary member of the Royal Scottish in 1871 and R.A. in 1877. He was a candidate for the Presidency of the Royal Academy in 1896 and was Knighted in 1907.