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Two Watercolour Exhibitions At The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge

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While I was inwards Cambridge late I visited the Fitzwilliam Museum to meet ii exhibitions:
Below you lot volition honor a review of the starting fourth dimension exhibition - as well as review of Ruskin's Turners follows tomorrow.

I highly recommend both exhibitions to anybody who enjoys watercolour paintings - especially those of the past times Masters - as well as who tin give notice teach to Cambridge earlier they close.
Admission is gratis to both exhibitions.

Venice, tempest at sunset, 1840, J.M.W. Turner (1775-1851),
watercolour as well as bodycolour with pen as well as carmine ink as well as scratching out on paper, 222mm x 320mm
All images copyright Fitzwilliam Museum

This was painted during Turner's tertiary see to Venice.
During the latter one-half of August 1840 he obviously produced 100+ color sketches on release sheets
as well as inwards sketchbooks.  He used his untrimmed thumbnail every bit a epitome tool and
used this to scratch the newspaper surface of the epitome to range highlights.
In my view, it's when I see exhibitions similar this that I appreciate (all over again) what is possible using transparent watercolour paints and/or opaque trunk colour. At the same fourth dimension I lament how footling nosotros meet of such variety as well as talent today when people retrieve it's OK to get got exhibitions of ostensibly watercolour paintings - which are genuinely stuffed amount of paintings inwards acrylic!  (I exercise wishing the acrylic painters would shape their ain gild as well as exit the watercolour societies to to a greater extent than traditional media!)

Come to this exhibition to meet what tin give notice hold upward achieved with watercolour as well as how impressive the painters of the past times were when they used it!

Shakespeare Cliff, Dover, c.1825, J.M.W. Turner (1775-1851), 
watercolour on paper, 181mm x 245mm
Unsurprisingly, this is a epitome which has been exhibited to a greater extent than than once!
I also recommend the catalogue for the starting fourth dimension exhibition as it's informative close the techniques employed past times the dissimilar artists. (I get got to state the Fitzwilliam Online Shop looks every bit it's good overdue for an upgrade!). The comprehend uses the higher upward epitome past times Turner.

It's been a really existent disappointment spell writing this postal service to honor that the Fitzwilliam website does non become far tardily to part the watercolours inwards its collection online. One could hold upward forgiven for thinking that in that location has been no volition to digitise the collection (or perhaps only a really misfortunate database and/or search engine of what has been digitised?). The halt trial is that the paintings which are most hard to exhibit are also the most hard to find!

There should hold upward no doubts that really many people appreciate watercolour paintings - this is an exhibition with a lot of visitors - however:
  • There is no virtual exhibition of the exhibition or selected highlights for those unable to visit
  • You get got to know to search via their app - which tin give notice hold upward constitute at http://webapps.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/explorer/
  • When you lot search the paintings inwards the collection, it's the stone oil paintings which typically come upward up for specific artists as well as non the watercolours.  However if you lot search nether drawings rather than paintings I as well as then constitute that the watercolours get to appear.
  • Initial impressions were that of import painters inwards watercolour appear to hold upward completely ignored or are really hard to honor - until the advanced search business office is used - or the special app.
However having raised the number with the Fitzwilliam, I'm assured they are really much aware of the issues with the website as well as the part business office as well as the impressions that it gives - as well as that these are currently beingness addressed past times the Museum. Which is a relief every bit hopefully that way things tin give notice entirely improve!

My sense interrogating the website for links to paintings inwards the exhibition way I've endeavoured to part about of the links to works inwards the collection - as well as online - inwards my review below.  Where it says "more watercolours by...." that way these are non necessarily inwards the exhibit but are portion of the collection.

Note also that the Museum is piloting a novel approach to Photography inwards the Galleries and is allowing people to get got photographs of paintings hung inwards the permanent collection - although sadly non those inwards the temporary exhibitions. Let's promise this novel approach volition also before long hold upward reflected inwards amend digitisation as well as access to the permanent collection as well as a to a greater extent than enlightened approach to the role of depression resolution images of those artists whose run left copyright many moons ago.


Watercolour: Elements of Nature


The Fitzwilliam Museum has a really fine collection of watercolour paintings. This exhibition:
  • demonstrates how the medium has been handled past times dissimilar painters working inwards dissimilar traditions as well as inwards dissimilar countries. 
  • highlights the private ways of working and 
  • where possible also comments on the paints as well as newspaper used past times the artist.
The exhibition is organised past times themes as well as sections - these are:

Miniature Painting

This includes 4 works by Nicholas Hilliard.  See Watercolour miniatures past times Hilliard - typically on vellum stuck to a bill of fare (often a playing card)

Flower Painting

This has 4 fantabulous examples of large watercolour paintings of flowers by Pierre-Joseph Redouté

Landscapes inwards Britain's "Golden Age"

This comments on how watercolours developed inwards the 18th as well as 19th centuries beyond the purely topographical. They became to a greater extent than interesting every bit artists began to hold upward able to sketch as well as pigment inwards the landscape due to changes inwards pigment applied scientific discipline which made watercolour paints easier to role as well as transport. 

Importantly this department highlighted about quondam favourites amongst other painters I'm less familiar with - such every bit Cornelius Varley as well as Peter de Wint and others.
Yorkshire fells, c.1812, Peter De Wint (1784-1849)
watercolour with paste arabic over traces of graphite on paper, 363mm x 565mm

De Wint was influenced past times the run of Thomas Girtin
He to a greater extent than oft than non used a heavier weight newspaper past times Thomas Creswick (c.1774-1840) or Whatman
It includes landscape paintings past times all the 'C's - Constable, Cotman, Cox, Cozens (A) and Cozens  (JR) and a lot of paintings of H2O inwards the ocean as well as the heaven past times Turner! (see higher upward for examples); views of uplands by Girtin and visionary paintings by Palmer.
Postwick Grove, c.1835-1840, John Sell Cotman (1782-1842),
watercolour on paper, 178mm x 272mm
The Magic Apple Tree, c.1830, Samuel Palmer (1805-1881)
pen as well as indian ink, watercolour, inwards places mixed with a gum-like medium, on paper, 349mm x 273mm

This is 1 from his 'visionary' menstruation when he was based inwards Shoreham inwards Kent.
There's a long explanation close this famous epitome on the website (link embedded inwards title)"in the to a greater extent than finished works, similar the Magic Apple Tree, he invests nature with a visionary significance 
instead of attempting to stand upward for landscape every bit such"

Artists' materials

This focuses on the materials used to prepare paints. Dry pigments - mostly derived from minerals, plants, natural earths as well as insects are on display along with the method of using mussel shells to mix them with a binder such every bit paste arabic.

The books of recipes for making pocket-size hard cakes of pigment (introduced inwards 1781) as well as an early on plein air epitome box is on display.

The exhibition is notable for commenting on materials inwards relation to private paintings inwards both the exhibition as well as catalogue. Would that to a greater extent than exhibitions did the same!

Watercolour as well as the Amateur

The modify inwards applied scientific discipline for producing paints as well as the growing popularity of landscape paintings inwards the 19th century prompted a boom inwards sketching.

Included inwards the exhibition are manuals for "how to sketch" including A Treatise on Landscape Painting as well as Effects inwards Water Colours" past times David Cox who was working fine art tutor for much of his professional person career. (Note: You tin give notice read an archived re-create online - I downloaded the pdf copy)

Watercolour Liberated 

This portion of the exhibition focuses on how painters reacted to the evolution of watercolour epitome to include a high grade of destination during the course of education of the 19th century. Consequently it focuses on the to a greater extent than informal, sketchy as well as looser applications of watercolours past times painters such as Cezanne as well as Pissaro; Singer Sargent as well as Whistler; and Steer as well as Nash
  • one of my favourites is Arthur Melville (1858–1904) who is a bright watercolourist as well as influenced the Glasgow Boys!  I was genuinely pleased to meet a epitome of The Alhambra at Granada but it's such a pity the epitome is non online - he's good exterior the limitations of copyright.  Interestingly its color palette as well as the absence of bluish skies makes it resemble a epitome of Edinburgh Rock to a greater extent than than Granada!
Giudecca, ?1913, John Singer Sargent (1856-1925)
watercolour over graphite on paper, 305mm x 457mm

Sargent oft painted his watercolours spell sat inwards a gondola. This exceptional sentiment is good away from the to a greater extent than pop sights inwards Venice and has been identified every bit the Rio delle Covertite on the Island of Giudecca
There are ii other rather overnice paintings past times Singer Sargent of a fountain as well as boats on Majorca - inwards the show
Grey as well as Silver, North Sea, c.1884, James Abbott McNeill Whistler (1834-1903)
watercolour on paper, 165mm x 268mm

Whistler was convinced that it was possible to bring atmosphere using a really express color palette as well as did thence inwards watercolours only every bit much every bit he did inwards oils
"a flake of Antwerp blue, an' white and' black's all you lot want; as well as pigment thin"

Here are links to their works inwards the permanent collection:
Still life flowers inwards a jar, ?1885-1880, Paul Cézanne (1839-1906)
watercolour as well as graphite on white paper, 466mm x 300mm

 There's also a Earth scape past times Cezanne inwards the exhibition. Neither are his best work.

In price of British watercolour painters, the entirely living creative someone represented is Barbara Rae with her epitome of Red Hill. It's a compassion in that location aren't to a greater extent than paintings past times contemporary heavyweights.

The ii (dead) British painters most represented inwards the final department are 

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