John Ellys or Ellis (1701-1757) was an English portrait-painter.
Ellys was born in March 1701. When about fifteen years old, he was placed for instruction under Sir James Thornhill, with whom he did not stay long, and for a short time under Johann Rudolph Schmutz. He subsequently became an imitator of John Vanderbank and was a student with William Hogarth and others in the academy started in October 1720 by Louis Chéron and Vanderbank in St. Martin's Lane. After a few years Ellys and Hogarth succeeded to the directorship of this St. Martin's Lane Academy, and maintained their connection with it for about thirty years.
When still young Ellys obtained a warrant to copy pictures in the royal palaces for study, and copied several pictures by Anthony Vandyck, Godfrey Kneller, Peter Lely, and others. Of the Kneller school of portrait-painting, he disliked the innovations of Sir Joshua Reynolds. He eventually succeeded to Vanderbank's house and practice, and having already purchased from Moses Vanderbank a share of the place of tapestry-maker to the Crown, eventually obtained that position also. Ellys was consulted and employed by Sir Robert Walpole in the formation of his collection of pictures, and was sent over to Holland to purchase from the Princess of Friesland the picture of The Virgin and Angels by Vandyck, later in the Hermitage Gallery. For his services Ellys was rewarded by Walpole with the sinecure of master keeper of the lions in the Tower, which he held up to his death.
In October 1736 Ellys succeeded Philip Mercier as principal painter to Frederick, Prince of Wales, He was a member of the committee of artists appointed in 1755 to frame a plan for constructing a royal academy, but did not survive to see any result of their efforts, as he died on 14 September 1757.
There is a portrait group of Lord Whitworth and his nephew, dated 1727, by him that was at Knole in Kent. Many of his portraits were engraved by John Faber, jun. Among these were: Lavinia Fenton, Duchess of Bolton; James Figg the pugilist; Frederick, Prince of Wales; Henry Medley; George Oldham; Lord Mayor Humphrey Parsons; William Wake, archbishop of Canterbury; Thomas Walker, the actor, as Captain Macheath; Robert Wilks the actor, and George Stanhope, dean of Canterbury. The last named was also engraved by J. Sympson. Among engravings by other artists from Ellys's portraits were Kitty Clive, by John Tinney; Sir Charles Wager, by George White; and Edmund Gibson, bishop of London, by George Vertue.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: "Ellys, John". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.