Alefounder was born in
Colchester, Essex in 1757 and became a student at the
Royal Academy Schools in 1776. He won a silver medal in 1782. In 1784 he exhibited some theatrical portraits and portrait groups.
Francesco Bartolozzi made an engraving after his portrait of "
Peter the Wild Boy" He subsequently went to India and died at
Calcutta on 25 December 1794. According to
William Baillie, in a letter written the following year, he committed suicide, in despair at his financial situation.{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aNuj6v9R1eIC&pg=PA121|page=121|title=The Artificial Empire: The Indian Landscapes of William Hodges|first=Giles Henry Rupert|last= Tillotson|author-link=Giles Tillotson|publisher=Routledge|year=2000 ==References==