Events

April–May – Josiah Wedgwood shows off his first reproductions of the Portland Vase, in jasperware.

Works

William Blake – The Marriage of Heaven and Hell
Giuseppe Cades – The Virgin Mary and Infant Jesus served by the Angels
Henri-Pierre Danloux – Le supplice d'une vestale
Johann Heinrich Fussli – Thor Battering the Midgard Serpent
Gaetano Gandolfi – Joseph's Dream
Francisco de Goya – El Afilador and Sagrada Familia
Angelica Kauffman – Venus überredet Helena Paris zu erhören
Thomas Lawrence – Portrait of Queen Charlotte
Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo – Pulcinella und Saltimbanchi
John Trumbull – Washington at Verplanck's Point
(approximate date)
- Joseph Wright of Derby – Richard Arkwright

Births

January 1 – George Petrie, Irish painter, musician, antiquary and archaeologist (died 1866)
January 25 – Moritz Michael Daffinger, Austrian miniature painter and sculptor (died 1849)
January 30 – Carl Gustaf Löwenhielm, Swedish diplomat who made paintings of the countries in which he served (died 1858)
February 19 – Anton Schimser, Polish sculptor of Austrian origin (died 1838)
March – Kapiton Zelentsov, Russian painter notable for his book illustrations (died 1845)
March 14 – Ludwig Emil Grimm, German painter and engraver (died 1863)
March 28 – William Henry Hunt, English water-color painter (died 1864)
May 22 - Bianca Milesi, Italian writer, painter, and patriot (died 1849)
May 23 - James Pradier, Swiss-born French sculptor in the neoclassical style (died 1852)
June 19 – John Gibson, Welsh-born sculptor (died 1866)
July 6 – Giuseppe Tominz, Italian-Slovenian portrait painter (died 1866)
July 18 – John Frazee, first American born sculptor to execute a bust in marble (died 1852)
September 24 – Robert Trewick Bone, English painter of sacred, classical and genre scenes (died 1840)
date unknown
- Willis Buell, American politician and portrait painter (died 1851)
- Keisai Eisen, Japanese ukiyo-e artist (died 1848)
- Henri van der Haert, Belgian portrait painter, sculptor, illustrator and engraver (died 1846)
- Paweł Maliński, Czech-born sculptor and mason who lived and worked in Poland (died 1853)
- Edward Villiers Rippingille, English painter (died 1859)
- Luigi Rossini, Italian artist known for his etchings of ancient Roman architecture (died 1857)

Deaths

February 20 – Erik Pauelsen, Danish landscape painter (born 1749)
March 8 – Augustyn Mirys, Polish painter (born 1700)
March 28 – François-Elie Vincent, Swiss painter of portrait miniatures (born 1708)
April 29 – Charles-Nicolas Cochin, French engraver, designer, writer, and art critic (born 1715)
August – Agostino Carlini, Italian sculptor and painter (born 1718)
September 24 – John Keyse Sherwin, English engraver and painter (born 1751)
date unknown:
- Isoda Koryusai, Japanese printmaker and painter (born 1735)
- Niccolò Lapiccola, Italian painter (born 1730)