19: Interdisciplinary Studies in the Long Nineteenth Century, 2021
The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries witnessed the rise of the mercantile classes in... more The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries witnessed the rise of the mercantile classes in Britain and the creation of a new industrial elite. Concurrently, there was a shift towards increasing independence for women and a raised awareness of women's rights, as crucial changes were enacted in the laws concerning marriage and ownership of property. In the sphere of collecting, women became major promoters of modern art, even if they were less in evidence than their female counterparts in the USA or their male equivalents in Britain. It was not until 1951, for example, that the National Museum of Wales was enriched by the Davies sisters' collection, even though they began collecting before the First World War. Historically, more credit has been given to English and Irish male philanthropists, such as Sir Samuel Courtauld and Sir Hugh Lane, than to the women who played a key role in the early accessioning of Impressionism in British museums and galleries. These included not only the Davies sisters in Wales, but collectors such as Anne Kessler in England and Rosalind Maitland and Isabel M. Traill in Edinburgh. 1 Indeed, there are numerous women, often the wives of prominent businessmen, whose roles as tastemakers have been completely ignored: either because their independence of thought has been credited to an agent or spouse; or because their husband controlled the finances and their name has never been recorded in receipts or dealer stock books. The focus of this article is one such collector, Elizabeth Workman, whose role as a major British collector of Impressionism has been, at best, confused with that of her husband and, at worst, exploited by the latter for financial gain. Elizabeth Russell Workman (1874-1962) (Fig. 1), as well as being a celebrated master yachtsman and a mother of four, was one of the most enlightened art collectors of her generation. In the 1920s she and her husband Robert Alfred Workman (1872-1948) lived at 3 Seamore Place in an exclusive part of London's Mayfair. She was captured on canvas by several 1
The German art historian G.F. Waagen (1794-1868) visited the Murray of Henderland collection in E... more The German art historian G.F. Waagen (1794-1868) visited the Murray of Henderland collection in Edinburgh in 1856. This was his second trip to Scotland and he stayed in Edinburgh with James Gibson Craig, who had invited him to attend a meeting of the Archaeological Society. Waagen recalled, 'Our mornings were spent in visiting the collections of pictures in the vicinity of this picturesque city, and the evenings in society of the most agreeable kind.' 1 Craig himself was the owner of a striking painting by Boucher which Waagen describes as follows: 'Portrait of Madame de Pompadour, in a white silk dress, a small book on her lap. She is seated in a garden. Very pretty.' 2 The description is close to the painting now in the Victoria & Albert Museum, part of the Jones bequest of 1882. The early provenance of this picture is unknown and it would be satisfying to make the connection with Craig's picture. However, as this essay will reveal, depressingly few good French eighteenth-century paintings were acquired by Scottish collectors. I am very grateful to Christopher Baker (National Galleries of Scotland), Dr Godfrey Evans (National Museums of Scotland), Katrina Thomson (formerly with the National Trust for Scotland) and Robert Wenley (Glasgow Museums) for their generous assistance with this essay. 1 G.F. Waagen, Galleries and Cabinets of Art in Great Britain (London 1857), p.432. 2 Ibid., p. 433.
During the late 1870s and early 1880s, Monet reached a crossroads in his career. Based in Vetheui... more During the late 1870s and early 1880s, Monet reached a crossroads in his career. Based in Vetheuil and later at Poissy, he was often short of money and, even though radical thought and new scientific developments continued to inform much of his work of this period, he was also obliged to consider a more conventional approach, often catering to the market. During the 1880s, he rethought his earlier emphasis on modernity and developed his skills as a painter of pure landscape, culminating in the experimental works he produced on the Normandy coast. This collection of essays, many by leading scholars in the field, looks in-depth at the political, economic, scientific, religious, literary and art historical context for this complex and often contradictory period in Monet's life.
Vincent van Gogh has become one of the best-known and best-loved artists in the history of art, b... more Vincent van Gogh has become one of the best-known and best-loved artists in the history of art, but he is said to have sold only a single painting in his entire life. An extraordinary figure, whose art and life were inextricably and tragically intertwined, he is seen by many as the archetypal misunderstood, tormented genius. Astonishingly, he was only active as an artist for some ten years during which time his style changed dramatically from the dark realist work of his early Dutch years, via the lessons he learned in Paris from Impressionism, to the highly disturbing work of his last period with its writhing brushwork and febrile colours.In his own day, he remained relatively unacknowledged outside a small circle of admirers, his cause not helped by his difficult and unpredictable character. This book examines the fascinating story of how his work gradually came to be appreciated and collected in Britain - a country in which he lived (albeit unhappily), from 1873 to 1875, whose primary language he spoke and wrote fluently, and whose literature he greatly admired. In focusing on this early taste for the artist, the book uncovers important new, and unpublished, research on the collectors and on the British interest in Van Gogh.
19: Interdisciplinary Studies in the Long Nineteenth Century, 2021
The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries witnessed the rise of the mercantile classes in... more The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries witnessed the rise of the mercantile classes in Britain and the creation of a new industrial elite. Concurrently, there was a shift towards increasing independence for women and a raised awareness of women's rights, as crucial changes were enacted in the laws concerning marriage and ownership of property. In the sphere of collecting, women became major promoters of modern art, even if they were less in evidence than their female counterparts in the USA or their male equivalents in Britain. It was not until 1951, for example, that the National Museum of Wales was enriched by the Davies sisters' collection, even though they began collecting before the First World War. Historically, more credit has been given to English and Irish male philanthropists, such as Sir Samuel Courtauld and Sir Hugh Lane, than to the women who played a key role in the early accessioning of Impressionism in British museums and galleries. These included not only the Davies sisters in Wales, but collectors such as Anne Kessler in England and Rosalind Maitland and Isabel M. Traill in Edinburgh. 1 Indeed, there are numerous women, often the wives of prominent businessmen, whose roles as tastemakers have been completely ignored: either because their independence of thought has been credited to an agent or spouse; or because their husband controlled the finances and their name has never been recorded in receipts or dealer stock books. The focus of this article is one such collector, Elizabeth Workman, whose role as a major British collector of Impressionism has been, at best, confused with that of her husband and, at worst, exploited by the latter for financial gain. Elizabeth Russell Workman (1874-1962) (Fig. 1), as well as being a celebrated master yachtsman and a mother of four, was one of the most enlightened art collectors of her generation. In the 1920s she and her husband Robert Alfred Workman (1872-1948) lived at 3 Seamore Place in an exclusive part of London's Mayfair. She was captured on canvas by several 1
The German art historian G.F. Waagen (1794-1868) visited the Murray of Henderland collection in E... more The German art historian G.F. Waagen (1794-1868) visited the Murray of Henderland collection in Edinburgh in 1856. This was his second trip to Scotland and he stayed in Edinburgh with James Gibson Craig, who had invited him to attend a meeting of the Archaeological Society. Waagen recalled, 'Our mornings were spent in visiting the collections of pictures in the vicinity of this picturesque city, and the evenings in society of the most agreeable kind.' 1 Craig himself was the owner of a striking painting by Boucher which Waagen describes as follows: 'Portrait of Madame de Pompadour, in a white silk dress, a small book on her lap. She is seated in a garden. Very pretty.' 2 The description is close to the painting now in the Victoria & Albert Museum, part of the Jones bequest of 1882. The early provenance of this picture is unknown and it would be satisfying to make the connection with Craig's picture. However, as this essay will reveal, depressingly few good French eighteenth-century paintings were acquired by Scottish collectors. I am very grateful to Christopher Baker (National Galleries of Scotland), Dr Godfrey Evans (National Museums of Scotland), Katrina Thomson (formerly with the National Trust for Scotland) and Robert Wenley (Glasgow Museums) for their generous assistance with this essay. 1 G.F. Waagen, Galleries and Cabinets of Art in Great Britain (London 1857), p.432. 2 Ibid., p. 433.
During the late 1870s and early 1880s, Monet reached a crossroads in his career. Based in Vetheui... more During the late 1870s and early 1880s, Monet reached a crossroads in his career. Based in Vetheuil and later at Poissy, he was often short of money and, even though radical thought and new scientific developments continued to inform much of his work of this period, he was also obliged to consider a more conventional approach, often catering to the market. During the 1880s, he rethought his earlier emphasis on modernity and developed his skills as a painter of pure landscape, culminating in the experimental works he produced on the Normandy coast. This collection of essays, many by leading scholars in the field, looks in-depth at the political, economic, scientific, religious, literary and art historical context for this complex and often contradictory period in Monet's life.
Vincent van Gogh has become one of the best-known and best-loved artists in the history of art, b... more Vincent van Gogh has become one of the best-known and best-loved artists in the history of art, but he is said to have sold only a single painting in his entire life. An extraordinary figure, whose art and life were inextricably and tragically intertwined, he is seen by many as the archetypal misunderstood, tormented genius. Astonishingly, he was only active as an artist for some ten years during which time his style changed dramatically from the dark realist work of his early Dutch years, via the lessons he learned in Paris from Impressionism, to the highly disturbing work of his last period with its writhing brushwork and febrile colours.In his own day, he remained relatively unacknowledged outside a small circle of admirers, his cause not helped by his difficult and unpredictable character. This book examines the fascinating story of how his work gradually came to be appreciated and collected in Britain - a country in which he lived (albeit unhappily), from 1873 to 1875, whose primary language he spoke and wrote fluently, and whose literature he greatly admired. In focusing on this early taste for the artist, the book uncovers important new, and unpublished, research on the collectors and on the British interest in Van Gogh.
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