FDA-P.595-2023
Parts
Object number
FDA-P.595-2023
Object type
Identification
Title
Study
Title Type
Common name
Description
Painted landscape view of buildings, with grassy foreground and a pale sky
Comments
Throughout his career, the Liverpool-based landscape artist William Davis made oil studies outdoors in preparation for works he intended to paint in his studio. The immediacy and freedom demonstrated in these oil sketches is at times less apparent in his finished works. As the artist himself admitted of one such work: ‘the study is better than the picture’.
A label on the back of this work reveals that in 1908 it was lent to the Historical Exhibition of Liverpool Art at the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool. The lender was Alfred Booth, Amis’s grandfather. In total Booth lent ten works to the exhibition, demonstrating his passion for the work of local artists. The lasting reputation of Davis as a Liverpool artist is demonstrated by the fact that a total of 49 of his works were included in the exhibition, 35 years after his death.
In 1855, the Dublin-born landscape painter William Davis exhibited a Cheshire landscape titled Early Spring Evening at the Royal Academy. The work was admired by D. G. Rossetti, who described it in a letter as one of the 'best landscapes in the place'. John Ruskin was also aware of Davis, calling his landscapes 'good Pre-Raphaelite work'. Ford Madox Brown (who had taught Rossetti) described a Davis landscape exhibited at the Academy the following year as 'perfection'. Although he remained on the fringes of the Pre-Raphaelite circle, Davis showed his work in Pre-Raphaelite exhibitions and came to be appreciated by Pre-Raphaelite collectors. Following his death in 1873, Brown organised a memorial exhibition to raise funds for Davis's widow.
A label on the back of this work reveals that in 1908 it was lent to the Historical Exhibition of Liverpool Art at the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool. The lender was Alfred Booth, Amis’s grandfather. In total Booth lent ten works to the exhibition, demonstrating his passion for the work of local artists. The lasting reputation of Davis as a Liverpool artist is demonstrated by the fact that a total of 49 of his works were included in the exhibition, 35 years after his death.
In 1855, the Dublin-born landscape painter William Davis exhibited a Cheshire landscape titled Early Spring Evening at the Royal Academy. The work was admired by D. G. Rossetti, who described it in a letter as one of the 'best landscapes in the place'. John Ruskin was also aware of Davis, calling his landscapes 'good Pre-Raphaelite work'. Ford Madox Brown (who had taught Rossetti) described a Davis landscape exhibited at the Academy the following year as 'perfection'. Although he remained on the fringes of the Pre-Raphaelite circle, Davis showed his work in Pre-Raphaelite exhibitions and came to be appreciated by Pre-Raphaelite collectors. Following his death in 1873, Brown organised a memorial exhibition to raise funds for Davis's widow.
Description
Dimensions
height (actual size): 302mm
width (actual size): 452mm
width (actual size): 452mm
Material
oil paint
Materials & techniques note
oil on board
Production
Person
Davis, William, 1812 - 1873 (Artist)
Date
c.1840
History and association
Object history note
Provenance: Collection of Alfred Booth (1834–1914); by descent to Richard Henry Allen Amis (K.S. 1945-50; 1932-2018); by whom bequeathed to Eton College
Exhibited: 'Historical Exhibition of Liverpool Art', Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, 23 May to 4 July 1908, catalogue number 759 as 'Study'; 'An Etonian Collector: The Richard Amis Bequest', The Verey Gallery, Eton College, 16 November 2023 to 24 March 2024
Exhibited: 'Historical Exhibition of Liverpool Art', Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, 23 May to 4 July 1908, catalogue number 759 as 'Study'; 'An Etonian Collector: The Richard Amis Bequest', The Verey Gallery, Eton College, 16 November 2023 to 24 March 2024
