Study for Cornish Fisherman
Edith Collier, Artist
This is one of the
paintings
in our collection.
It was made in
St. Ives, Cornwall, England, Great Britain
in circa 1920.
See full details
Object Detail
About the Work
“My
Father
spent
virtually
his
whole
life
on
the
sea,
and
I
often
used
to
accompany
my
mother
to
visit
his
ships
when
in
port.
The
river
Tyne
of
my
childhood
was
a
busy
place,
with
shipyards,
loading
docks,
fish
markets,
and
great
slag
heaps
of
coal.
This
old,
crusty
sea
dog
has
many
a
tale
to
tell
–
he's
living
the
past
at
this
moment.”
April Pearson, a founding member of the Whanganui Potters Society for the July 2020 instalment of the My Choice exhibition series.
April Pearson, a founding member of the Whanganui Potters Society for the July 2020 instalment of the My Choice exhibition series.
Measurements
Frame 613 x 510 x 30mm
Image 332 x 270mm
Image 332 x 270mm
Media
Watercolour and charcoal on paper
Description
Framed, glazed and matted watercolour and charcoal portrait of a fisherman in red chair. Standard wooden frame, glazed with glass.
By the time Edith Collier arrived in St Ives, Cornwall in July or August of 1920, she had been in England for 7 years. Between 1913 – 15 Edith studied at the St Johns School of Art in London, receiving a sound but conservative and largely academic art education, that would have stood her in good stead to perhaps have a career as an art teacher when she returned to her home town of Wanganui. This was what her family expected of her - to return after her sojourn abroad to settle down, wordly but obliging. However Edith stayed on in England after art school to soak up the new waves of modernism that were beginning to emerge. It was her time spent with the Australian artist Margaret Macpherson in Bonmahon, Ireland and New Zealander – Frances Hodgkins in St Ives that proved to be the most fruitful and productive periods of her career.
It is likely that the Women’s International Art Club (WIAC) in London was where Edith Collier and Frances Hodgkins met and it was during this time that Edith arranged to visit Hodgkins’s summer school at St Ives. Joanne Drayton writes “The fishing village of St Ives offered a rich history as a gathering place for artists but also a great variety of subject matter and motifs. Edith lived and worked closely with members of the Hodgkins class, finding most of her subject-matter among the inhabitants, the fishing boats and wharves, and the narrow streets of the village…Although aware of possible prejudice against her modern work at home, Edith maintained her sense of adventure and commitment to exploring the boundaries of modern art. Frances Hodgkins wrote of her progress in October 1920:
I have one very bright N.Zealander, from Wanganui, Collier by name – who is coming on wonderfully – I’ll make something of her I feel sure…”
Edith produced a large body of work over the two to three months she spent in St Ives, working primarily in watercolour and gouache as well as sketching in pencil and charcoal. Prior to arriving in St Ives, Edith had studied with Margaret Macpherson and seen the work of Matisse and other modern painters. This coupled with the encouragement from Hodgkins led to this period being the most productive time of her career, with the responses to her subject matter being more spontaneous and experimental. Composition is flattened and her palette became simplified and the use of colour more daring.
It is refreshing to see these works enmasse, as they are reflective of Edith’s practice flourishing. Despite wanting to travel abroad with Hodgkins to France, Edith’s family refused to financially support her time abroad and Edith returned to NewZealand at the beginning of 1922.
(Introductory text, 'Edith Collier at St Ives', Greg Donson, 2008)
By the time Edith Collier arrived in St Ives, Cornwall in July or August of 1920, she had been in England for 7 years. Between 1913 – 15 Edith studied at the St Johns School of Art in London, receiving a sound but conservative and largely academic art education, that would have stood her in good stead to perhaps have a career as an art teacher when she returned to her home town of Wanganui. This was what her family expected of her - to return after her sojourn abroad to settle down, wordly but obliging. However Edith stayed on in England after art school to soak up the new waves of modernism that were beginning to emerge. It was her time spent with the Australian artist Margaret Macpherson in Bonmahon, Ireland and New Zealander – Frances Hodgkins in St Ives that proved to be the most fruitful and productive periods of her career.
It is likely that the Women’s International Art Club (WIAC) in London was where Edith Collier and Frances Hodgkins met and it was during this time that Edith arranged to visit Hodgkins’s summer school at St Ives. Joanne Drayton writes “The fishing village of St Ives offered a rich history as a gathering place for artists but also a great variety of subject matter and motifs. Edith lived and worked closely with members of the Hodgkins class, finding most of her subject-matter among the inhabitants, the fishing boats and wharves, and the narrow streets of the village…Although aware of possible prejudice against her modern work at home, Edith maintained her sense of adventure and commitment to exploring the boundaries of modern art. Frances Hodgkins wrote of her progress in October 1920:
I have one very bright N.Zealander, from Wanganui, Collier by name – who is coming on wonderfully – I’ll make something of her I feel sure…”
Edith produced a large body of work over the two to three months she spent in St Ives, working primarily in watercolour and gouache as well as sketching in pencil and charcoal. Prior to arriving in St Ives, Edith had studied with Margaret Macpherson and seen the work of Matisse and other modern painters. This coupled with the encouragement from Hodgkins led to this period being the most productive time of her career, with the responses to her subject matter being more spontaneous and experimental. Composition is flattened and her palette became simplified and the use of colour more daring.
It is refreshing to see these works enmasse, as they are reflective of Edith’s practice flourishing. Despite wanting to travel abroad with Hodgkins to France, Edith’s family refused to financially support her time abroad and Edith returned to NewZealand at the beginning of 1922.
(Introductory text, 'Edith Collier at St Ives', Greg Donson, 2008)
Credit Line
Collection of the Edith Collier Trust, in the permanent care of the Sarjeant Gallery Te Whare o Rehua Whanganui
Collection Type
Loans
Collection
Acquisition Date
Circa 1984
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Accession Number:
2/44