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The Norwich School of Painters
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| In the early years of the 19th century Norwich
developed its own school of artists who were influenced
by each other and by the landscapes of Norfolk and
Norwich. In 1803 a group of these artist - some
professional and some amateurs - founded the Norwich
Society of Artists which held regular meetings in the
city - with sketching parties and exhibitions. At this
time the best known artists were John Crome, Robert
Ladbrooke, Richard Dixon, John Thirtle and Charles
Hodgson. John Sell Cotman would return to the city in
1806. Crome, Ladrooke, Hodgson and Cotman all had sons
who were artists and subsequently a second generation of
painters emerged - a group which also included James
Stark, George Vincent and Joseph Stannard. There then
occurred a third generation: Alfred Stannard, Henry
Bright and John Middleton - who were still producing
Norwich School-type paintings as late as the 1880s.
However, it was the first three decades of the 19th
century which produced most of the important works.
At this time Norwich was a radical and cultured place
where both the arts and the sciences were fostered. (Sir
James Edward, the first president of the Linnaean
Society lived in the city for many years.) When Andrew
Robertson, a friend of Constable, visited the city in
1814 he had this to say about the place:
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| 'I arrived here a
week ago and find it a place where the arts are very
much cultivated.... some branches of knowledge,
chemistry, botany, etc are carried to a great length.
General literature seems to be pursued with an ardour
which is astonishing when we consider that it does not
contain a university, and it is merely a manufacturing
town.' |
Among the Norwich intellectuals was the writer and
translator William Taylor
- who also gave lectures on art to the Norwich
Philosophical Society. In a lecture delivered in 1814 he
urged that architecture and townscapes should be
considered higher subjects than rural landscapes - a
comment which was almost certainly directed at John
Crome. Crome was seen by many as the founding father of
the Norwich School and his works were predominantly
depictions of rural scenes. Perhaps his most famous
painting, now hanging in the National Gallery in London,
is The Poringland Oak - which shows four bathers
in pond - with a large oak tree dominating the centre of
the canvas and a rural Norfolk scene in the background.
Other famous rural depictions of his include Whitlingham
Church and Postwick Grove.
Mousehold Heath by John Sell Cotman After returning to Norwich,
John Sell Cotman spent most of the rest of his life in
the county. However, he did gain a post as an art
teacher in 1834 at King's College in London and one of
his pupils was Dante Gabriel Rossetti. Cotman was
frustrated through out his life by, what he saw as, his
lack of success and by having to depend on teaching art
for a living. Cotman's water colours have a strength and
intensity which make them visually stunning. His
Norwich Market Place - which was exhibited in 1807 -
is a particularly effective piece - conveying the hustle
and bustle of the city on market day - with beautifully
drawn houses and St. Peter Mancroft's Church in the
background. Cotman also tackled a number of other famous
landmarks in Norwich including: Bishop Bridge and
Mousehold Heath.
Cotman House, No. 7 St.
Martin's-at-Palace-Plain in Norwich Other highlights from the Norwich School include
James Stark's and John Thirtle's paintings of Cromer,
Thirtle's boat builders near Cow Tower in Norwich and
Joseph Stannard's water frolics.
John Crome is buried in St. George's Church in
Colegate and there is a memorial to him on the back
wall. James Stark is buried in the Rosary Cemetery off
Rosary Road.
Memorial to John Crome |
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The Legacy The Norfolk landscape has continued
to provide inspiration to artists - some of whom - like
Horace Tuck (1876-1951), Alfred Munnings (1878-1959) and
Edward Seago (1910-1974) - have been directly inspired
by the work of the Norwich School painters. Seago lived
for many years at Ludham and left behind a stunning
collection of impressionistic paintings of Norfolk.
Horace Tuck's work has only recently reached a wider
audience thanks to Cyril Nunn who had the foresight of
purchasing the artist's complete studio work. Tuck has
been described as Norfolk's 'forgotten artist'.
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Links:
Norwich Castle Museum
Norwich School of Art
and Design
The Public Catalogue
Foundation |
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Supported
by Norfolk Tourism