A Watermill in Derbyshire
Original Watercolour Painting
by John Glover (1767-1849)
- Auction record £1.7 Million GBP ($2.7 Million USD).
- Similar works on paper listed to £49,250 GBP ($79,218 USD).
- We are grateful to Timothy Kendrew for confirming the authenticity of the painting on the basis of a first hand inspection (a signed letter from Timothy Kendrew is included in the sale).
- With inscription 'G No.5' verso possibly in Glover's hand.
- Painting - 18cm (7") x 25.5cm (10")
- Frame - 39.5cm (15 1/2") x 48cm (19")
Lot Notes
An extremely fine example of the work of important British landscape painter John Glover. The painting has been independently authenticated by Timothy Kendrew a former specialist with Christie's in London and Australia - a signed letter from Timothy Kendrew will be supplied to the buyer.
Glover's work is highly collectible realising thousands of pounds at auction. Please see the snapshots of auction results in the photograph section of this listing.
Condition
In very fine condition. The colours fresh and well preserved, the paper with some light surface marking particularly upper left as photographed. Presented in what is perhaps it's original early 19th century giltwood frame, the frame with extensive losses.
Artist Information
John Glover rose from rural obscurity to gain a reputation as a landscape painter second only to J M W Turner. He also proved highly influential, both directly as a teacher of professionals and amateurs in England, and then as an inspiration to newly-established artists in Australia. Mastering a variety of techniques, he was able to capture a wide range of atmospheric effects, though increasingly he gave watercolour the weight and intensity of oil, in order to emulate the Claudean tradition. Most characteristic – and popular – was his use of the ‘split brush’, in which watercolour was applied briskly with divided bristles in order to represent foliage. The son of an impoverished farmer, John Glover was born at Houghton on the Hill, Leicestershire, on 18 February 1767. He had two club feet, but worked in the fields as a youth and was extremely agile and active throughout his life. His experience of farming also instilled in him a great love of birds, animals and nature in general. A proficient calligrapher, Glover was appointed writing- master at the Free School in Appleby, Westmoreland, in 1786. Soon, he began to paint professionally and, in order to expand his artistic horizons, made visits to London; while there, he went to exhibitions and took lessons in watercolour, certainly from William Payne and possibly from John ‘Warwick’ Smith. Marrying in 1790, Glover became father of his first child, John Richardson Glover, in the same year; both John Richardson and a brother, William, would follow in their father’s footsteps to become landscape painters. In 1794, Glover set up as a drawing master in Lichfield, Staffordshire, teaching Henry Curzon Allport and Henry Salt – among others – and passing his ‘split brush’ technique onto them. During his time in the town, he entered the circle of the poet, Anna Seward, known as ‘the Swan of Lichfield’. Developing a reputation as a landscape watercolourist, Glover sent drawings each year for exhibition in London and, from 1795, also began to show oils at the Royal Academy of Arts. Though much of the period 1795-99 was taken up with making sketching tours through Britain, he then exhibited regularly; soon, he appeared to many contemporaries as the chief rival to J M W Turner – much to the irritation of John Constable. A founder member of the Society of Painters in Water Colours in 1804, Glover took a house in London – at 3 Montague Square – in 1805, following the success of its first exhibition, in which his works were more highly priced than those of any competitor. He was elected President in 1807, and again in 1814-15, during the period in which he was instrumental in its short-lived reconstruction as the Society for Painters in Oil and Water-Colours. At the same time, in 1814, he became the first English artist to be awarded a gold medal at the Paris Salon. In 1817, he withdrew from the Society of Painters in Water Colours in order to make his (unsuccessful) bid for election to the Royal Academy. Shortly after his resignation, Glover moved to Blowick Farm, a property near Patterdale, Ullswater, in the Lake District. However, a year later, he set out on a tour of Switzerland and Italy with H C Allport; and would sell the property to buy a work by Claude Lorrain. Between 1820 and 1824, Glover held a number of solo shows in London; these emphasised the traditional nature of his work by placing it among pictures by Claude Lorrain and Richard Wilson and his own copies of seventeenth century landscapes. In 1823, he also helped inaugurate the Society of British Artists. In 1830, Glover decided to follow his three younger sons to Van Diemen’s Land (now known as Tasmania). He was joined by his wife and eldest son, while his two married daughters remained in England. Arriving in Hobart on 1 April 1831, he used the substantial profit from the sale of both his pictures and his house (at 16 Montague Square) to purchase a large estate at Mill’s Plain, at the foot of Ben Lomond, east of Launceston – an estate he nostalgically named Patterdale. Painting the local scenery and inhabitants, as well as farming sheep, he sent pictures to various London exhibitions, including a solo show. However, he probably had a greater influence on the development of Australian art. He died on his estate on 9 December 1849. His work is represented in numerous public collections, including Tate and the V&A; The Fitzwilliam Museum (Cambridge), Leeds Art Gallery and Tyne & Wear Museums; and the Art Gallery of New South Wales (Sydney), the Art Gallery of South Australia (Adelaide), the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery (Launceston) and the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (Hobart).
General Information
Hang your investments on the wall
Art has long been regarded as a strong and safe investment. Ellen Kelleher a personal finance reporter for The Financial Times recently wrote an article recommending art, particularly in the $500 - $50,000 range as a sound long term investment with an impressive current average annual increase of 9.7 percent. See Hang your investments on the wall by Ellen Kelleher Published October 22 2010 by the Financial Times.
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Priory Fine Art specialises in high quality 17th - 20th Century British and European Fine Art. Our team have a combined experience of over 80 years in the field of fine art and have together handled the sale of many millions of pounds worth of art. As well as our own team of specialists we have close contacts from the leading auction houses who often assist us with particular pieces.
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Certificate of Authenticity
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- where the bold coloured text which forms the listing's heading reads 'by' and is followed by the artist's full name (or the artist's initials, if his full name is unrecorded), the work is in our opinion by the artist;
- where the expression "attributed to" is used, the work is in our opinion possibly a work by the artist, in whole or in part;
- where the expression 'circle of' is used, the work is in our opinion a work of the period of the artist and showing his influence;
- where the expression 'follower of' is used, the work is in our opinion a work executed in the artist's style but not necessarily by a pupil;
- where the expression 'manner of' is used, the work is in our opinion a work executed in the artist's style but of a later date;
- where the term "after" is used, the work is in our opinion a copy or pastiche (of any date) of a work by the artist. Where the term 'signed...' is used in our opinion the work has been signed by the artist, where the term 'with signature...' or 'bears signature...' is used in our opinion the signature is by a hand other than that of the artist.
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