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Harvesting : Sunset

Watercolour
1863 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Object Type
Landscape painting in oil became steadily more popular throughout the 19th century. John Constable and J.M.W. Turner take credit for establishing landscape as a suitable theme for painting. Until then history paintings had been considered more important, but increasingly naturalistic oil paintings of picturesque views of the British landscape appealed to a wider section of the art-buying public.

People
Henry Brittan Willis (1810-1884) was the son of a Bristol painter and was instructed by his father. He went to America in 1842 but returned and settled in London in 1843. He exhibited from 1844 to 1883, mainly at the Old Watercolour Society, but also at the Royal Academy, the British Institution and elsewhere. Willis seems to have specialised in landscapes, often with cattle and wagons, as here. This picture of the harvest on the South Downs is typical of his work.

Object details

Category
Object type
TitleHarvesting : Sunset
Materials and techniques
Watercolour
Brief description
Watercolour by Henry Brittan Willis entitled 'Harvest Field, with a Bullock Waggon : Sunset'. Great Britain, 1863.
Physical description
Watercolour entitled 'Harvest Field, with a Bullock Waggon : Sunset'.
Dimensions
  • Framed height: 47cm
  • Framed width: 47cm
Dimensions checked: Measured; 01/11/1999 by LH
Gallery label
(27/03/2003)
British Galleries:
Rural scenes like this appealed widely to the Victorian public. H.B. Willis specialised in subject matter showing landscapes with cattle and wagons. Many people who could not afford such paintings bought reproductions of them.
Credit line
Dixon Bequest
Object history
Painted in England by Henry Brittan Willis RWS (born in Bristol, 1810, died in London, 1884)
Subjects depicted
Summary
Object Type
Landscape painting in oil became steadily more popular throughout the 19th century. John Constable and J.M.W. Turner take credit for establishing landscape as a suitable theme for painting. Until then history paintings had been considered more important, but increasingly naturalistic oil paintings of picturesque views of the British landscape appealed to a wider section of the art-buying public.

People
Henry Brittan Willis (1810-1884) was the son of a Bristol painter and was instructed by his father. He went to America in 1842 but returned and settled in London in 1843. He exhibited from 1844 to 1883, mainly at the Old Watercolour Society, but also at the Royal Academy, the British Institution and elsewhere. Willis seems to have specialised in landscapes, often with cattle and wagons, as here. This picture of the harvest on the South Downs is typical of his work.
Collection
Accession number
1218-1886

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Record createdMarch 25, 2003
Record URL
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