The Krukov Canal, 1910


View of the Neva and the Stock Exchange from Trinity Bridge, 1910

Born in St Petersburg in 1871, Anna Oustromova-Lebedeva seems to have been a very fine print-maker, especially for her portrayal of cities, and of her birthplace above all. More of her work can be seen here:
http://russianavantgard.com/master_03_artists_world_of_art/anna_ostroumova-lebedeva.html

( See Further )

I once lived a short train-ride from Cardiff and used the visit the art-gallery there quite often, and this was a painting that appealed to me in a quiet sort of way, so I was pleased to come across it again on a web-site devoted to paintings from the Welsh museums. Steer (1860-1942) was an English painter who never developed a particularly distinctive style or vision, like Sickert for example, but was capable of good things when at the top of his form. Some might say, pretty things, but what is wrong with that if they show real painterly qualities? Although he had a long career, one tends to think of him as an Edwardian, and he painted this schoolgirl in 1906. I am reminded of him whenever when I come into London from the West Country because I pass his house by the river at Chelsea Reach, not far from where Whistler used to live. Here are two more paintings with comparable subject-matter:


Girl with a St Bernard, 1899.


The Blue Dress, 1891.

Pillar and Moon, 1932. These are out of period but utterly timeless. Nash expresses something about the more mysterious aspects of the English landscape that one finds in no other artist apart, perhaps, from Samuel Palmer. Aspects of the countryside that are being progressively destroyed, in no small part because England is becoming so overcrowded (apparently four times the population density of France, and concentrated too in the South), so I find these as sad as they are beautiful, though similar scenes can still be found in my own area.



Landscape of the Vernal Equinox, 1944

( Two More Here )

Rhyl was a beach was a seaside holiday resort on the North coast of Wales, conveniently located for visitors from the English industrial midlands. Cox was one of a number of fine British 19th Century watercolourists who would be better appreciated if their works could be exhibited without becoming faded. Under the cut an oil-painting of the same place; not quite as good as the watercolour, but pleasantly bleak. These remind me of Boudin's French seaside paintings.

( Oil-painting )

A decorative painting also known as 'Poetic Arabesques'. Denis was a Catholic artist who painted in a self-consciously naive style; not usually my cup of tea, but I wouldn't mind having this on my staircase (if there were room for it).

I was trying to think what this kind of picture by Victor Hugo reminded me of, and it just occured to me - the illustrations of Arthur Rackham:



(This is Ligeia from his illustrations to the tales of Edgar Allan Poe.)

A more cheerful Parisian scene, with plenty of bustle in the street.

( + 2 Vuillard lithographs )

Le Pont-au-Change. All of his best etchings have a disquieting air, and there are definite signs of craziness in this one. Meryon's Paris is definitely not a pretty place.

( See further )

Nothing but French things recently, I notice; well, that makes a change, so let's continue.

This is really a supplement to my recent post on Paul Delaroche, who married Louise Vernet, the only daughter of the painter Horace Vernet, and painted an extraordinary picture of her after her early death. Here is a pre-posthumous drawing of her.

( See Further )

A minor French artist who occasionally produced works of quite striking elegance; like this one which I saw in London not long ago.

( See further )

A detail from the painting of 1833, for English people perhaps the most familiar of all 19th Century history paintings, and in my view one of the finest examples of its genre. The historical background is this. Henry VIII, who had broken with Rome, was succeeded by his only son, Edward VI, who died young and childless in 1553. During Edward's reign, a serious effort was made to turn England into a truly Protestant country, but his legitimate successor, Mary, was an ardent Roman Catholic. So Lady Jane Grey who was descended from Henry VII through her mother, was proclaimed Queen as the Protestant alternative, but she was deposed by Mary's supporters within 9 days. Queen Mary did not generally like to have people killed unless it was her duty to burn them as heretics, and it is possible that Jane, who was merely a victim of other people's machinations, would have been spared if it had not been for the Protestant rebellion of Sir James Wyatt in January 1554. She was executed later in that year, at the age of 16.

( See further )

I find these very fresh and breezy, with splendid skies. Perhaps he deserves to be better known.

( See further )

Alfred Stevens (1828-1906, not to be confused with the British sculptor of the same name) was a Belgian painter who is best known for his refined portayals of well-dressed ladies; but he also enjoyed painting views of the sea, presumably from the Belgian coast. More from Belgium tomorrow.

( Three More )

A lithographic portrait of Bresdin by Odilon Redon. Bresdin (1822-1885) was the master of Redon, and produced a small body of work of extraordinary originality. Engravings unless otherwise stated.

( See further )