We at Richard Taylor Fine Art would like to wish you all a very happy and healthy 2025. Let's hope it's a good one for us all.
To start the new year off we have three of our favourites for you:
George Henry (1858-1943). Chanctonbury Ring - a superb Scottish Impressionist Royal Academy exhibited landscape oil painting by a noted Glasgow Boy artist, painted in 1932.
Norah Neilson Gray (1882-1931). Exotic - This stunning much exhibited 1920's Scottish portrait oil painting is by a noted Glasgow Girl artist. Painted circa 1923, the model for the painting was Rita McIlraith but the artist did not want to use her name in the title so it was called 'Exotic.'
Harold Harvey (1874-1941). Cornish Family in an Interior. A lovely figurative interior oil painting by a noted Newlyn School artist, painted circa 1912 and bathed in morning light.
Why not grab a cuppa, relax and browse our website for more beautiful paintings that could grace your walls this year. Hyper links below.
George Spencer Watson ROI, ARA, RA (1869-1934)
My Lady of the Rose - Portrait of Hilda, the Artist's Wife.
This superb British exhibited portrait oil painting is by noted artist George Spencer Watson. The influence of Lord Frederick Leighton and the Italian Renaissance can easily be seen. Entitled My Lady of the Rose, the sitter is his much loved wife, Hilda Gardiner. It was exhibited at the Royal Academy London in 1911 and has been handed down through the family. Watson also painted Hilda's two sisters, Elsie and Lillian and the family likeness is apparent. Known affectionately as 'Ginger', Hilda was a classical violinist trained in Europe. As a dancer and mime artist, Hilda was heavily influenced by the free form Greek style of Loie Fuller and Isadora Duncan. Her passion for dancing continued until the end of her life. She regularly organised and took part in performances both in London and later in the theatre that she built at Dunshay Manor, the Spencer Watsons's home on the Isle of Purbeck. The symbolic title for the portrait 'My Lady of the Rose' reflects the artist's deep reverence for Hilda. The symbolism of the Rose as a symbol of love but also of new beginnings, an appropriate theme for the portrait painted in 1909, to celebrate his marriage to the sitter. The figures in the background perhaps reflect both the sitter and artist's interest in mythology and the arts. A winged figure fires an arrow which strikes another figure on whose belt the artist has signed his initials. The vibrant blues and reds and the fantastic brushwork and delicate detail in Hilda's face make this a stunning, deeply personal portrait of a much loved wife. Signed GSW upper right.
Provenance. The Royal Academy, 1911 no.368 entitled My Lady of the Rose.
Bermondsey Settlement Picture Exhibition, 1913, label verso.
Dresden exhibition label verso.
William Harold Gardiner, ; Joan Gardiner (in Australia); Robin Tassell, of Dovehouse Stanwick, Northants;
Richard Thompson & Mary Spencer Watson; Thence by descent.
It's actually quite hard to pick a Painting of the Week, especially the first one, when we have so many lovely paintings to choose from. But this gorgeous romatic portrait of Watson's wife Hilda, My Lady of the Rose, is rather special. The colours zing off the canvas and the details are just superb. We also have the portraits mentioned above of Hilda's sisters, Lilian and Elsie on our website. Why not grab a coffee, have a break and have a browse through the website galleries.
Charles Burton Barber (1845-1894). Sisters of Charity.
We at Richard Taylor Fine Art would like to wish you all a very happy Christmas and a healthy and happy 2024.
The above British Victorian exhibited painting seems the perfect Christmas image and we just love it. It's unashamedly sentimental and just gorgeous. Barber often painted children and dogs so this is a little bit different and just perfect for this time of year. It was painted by Barber in 1871 and exhibited at the Royal Academy that year. Have a look at our latest stock in https://www.richardtaylorfineart.com/gallery/new and you'll find this painting and many other lovely paintings to while away some time between eating and more eating over christmas. Why not treat yourself to start the new year off on a good note.
This beautiful and impressive Royal Academy exhibited British Impressionist landscape oil painting is by noted artist Frederick Gordon Crosby. It was painted and exhibited in 1921 and depicts Mullion Cove and its harbour in Cornwall. Mullion Cove is situated on the west coast of the Lizard Peninsula and is a small sandy beach, mostly covered at high tide, beside the historic lifeboat station and picturesque Mullion harbour. The cove is now looked after by the National Trust and the photograph of the harbour on their website is from a very similar angle to our painting and largely unchanged. Although Crosby is best known for his automobile illustrations he was also a very talented landscape painter, painting in the Scottish highlands and in Cornwall. Two of his three Royal Academy exhibits were of coastal landscapes, of Lelant, exhibited in 1917 and Mullion Cove in 1921, both in Cornwall. Spending time in the West Country, Crosby may well have had connections to the Newlyn School artists in Cornwall, several of whom came from the West Midlands. The painting is a superb marine oil painting of Mullion harbour and vessels in the foreground with figures on the harbour wall. Beyond is the vast range of cliffs, the sea breaking against the rocks and seagulls wheeling over head. The rich palette of blues and greens has the wonderful Cornish School hues and the brushwork is superb. This is a fantastic example of Crosby's work, painted for the sheer enjoyment of painting and was no doubt well received at the Royal Academy in 1921.
We visited the Van Gogh exhibition in Amsterdam April 2023. Fantastic!. We also went to the Rilksmuseum, MOCO and Rembrandts House and Muritshuis in the Hague which was definately worth the effort to get there by train. Worth knowing that if you get at I amsterdam card for the week you still need to book time slots for the galleries. The botanical gardens are included and a canal trip which was surprisingly entertaining.
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