Jane Beetham Read

Jane Read
John Opie, Jane Beetham, 1790–1800, Brompton Consumption Hospital collection
Born	Jane Beetham c. 1773 London
Died	(1857-01-16)16 January 1857 London, England
Nationality	British
Education	Isabella Beetham John Opie
Known for	Silhouette and miniature portraits
Spouse(s)	John Read

Jane Beetham Read (c. 1773 – 16 January 1857) was an English portrait painter who began by working in her mother, Isabella Beetham's studio painting silhouette portraits in the 1790s. She studied under John Opie and exhibited her works at the Royal Academy of Arts between 1794 and 1797.

Jane Beetham was born about 1773 to Edward and Isabella Beetham. She was the granddaughter of William Betham of Little Strickland in Cumbria, England.Mary Matilda Betham was her cousin.

Jane was the first of six children. Her brother, William was born in 1774. Her other siblings were Harriet, Charles, Cecilia, and Alfred. The Beethams first lived in Cow Lane, Clerkenwell, London and then Little Queen Street, Holborn, London. They moved to 26 and 27 Fleet Street in 1785. Her mother operated a silhouette portrait studio and her father sold his patented washing machines in the buildings that housed their residence.

Read painted portraits from the 1790s until 1815. She painted silhouettes, generally on glass, for her mother from the early 1790s until 1797. Read's work was influenced by her mother's style and was often framed in pearwood or papier-mache. Her name (Miss Beetham) appeared on the sixth of seven trade labels issued by Isabella's business. The sixth label was used in the 1790s. In the late 1790s, Jane developed her own business with her own trade label. She added brass or ormolu frames as her career progressed.

She studied painting under John Opie and was the only female student that he taught. He painted her portrait between 1790 and 1800. Using a painting made by Opie, Read painted a portrait of Dr. Priestly. They may have had a romantic relationship. It was a concern of her uncle, Rev. William Betham (1749–1839) who warned Isabella about Jane and Opie spenting too much time together. His comments soured William's relationship with the Beetham's. Opie's wife, the former Mary Bunn, ran off with another man and the Opies were divorced on December 23, 1796. Opie was adamantly rejected when he asked Edward Beetham if he could marry Jane. Soon after, Jane married John Read.