May 22, 1858

Marion Harry Spielmann (May 22, 1858 to October 2, 1948) was an art historian. His criticism supported the growing professionalization of the artist in our society. What exactly does that mean? Here is part of an article behind the jstor wall. (or-- you can find Julie F. Codell's article in Victorian Periodicals Review (Vol. 22, No. 1 (Spring, 1989))

[Spielmann] was "a pivotal figure in the professionalization of art. Writing regularly for over a dozen newspapers and periodicals he promoted the institutions of the art world, defended the image of the artist as a middle-class gentleman (and lady since he assisted many women artists), advised governments and patrons in England, on the continent, and in India, and initiated a number of schemes to improve the economic and social status of artists....Spielman edited the Magazine of Art for seventeen yearts (1887-1904). He was the art editor for Black and White, which he helped found, and critic for The Graphic, The Daily Graphic, Pall Mall Gazette, London Illustrated News, Morning Leader, Westminster Gazette, Morning Post....Spielmann wrote for the DNB, the OED, was the art ediotr of the 10th edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica...and the author of numerous monologues and catologs.
...
A second feature of the ...struggle for professionalization of artists...[included] suggesting that art education move from specialized institutions to the universities.....

One of the women he supported was Henriette Ronner-Knip, famous for her saccahrine portrayals of kittens. You might say she is the precursor to the photoshopped degradation of the contemporary feline. In Spielmann's opinion her cat portrayals were comparable to Landseer's dogs. In fact Spielmann published a short volume about her, but I have not been able to locate a copy.

But he wrote a huge amount, and most of the following books should be freely available on the web:

The Modern Poster (1895)
The History of "Punch"  (1895)
The Portraits of Geoffrey Chaucer 1900 

John Ruskin (1900)
British Sculpture and Sculptors of Today  (1901)

The Hitherto Unidentified Contributions of W. M. Thackeray (1900)
Millais and His Works (1898)
The Iconography of Andreas Vesalius (1925)
Hugh Thomson: His Art, His Letters, His Humour and His Charm (1931).