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'Returning from the Haunts of the Seafowl', 1833
William Collins
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William Collins (1788–1847)
was a younger contemporary of J. M. W. Turner and
John Constable, and to British art lovers in the
second quarter of the 19th century, he was even
more popular - and collectable - than they were.
But his reputation has faded. Today he is probably
best known as the father of Wilkie Collins, the
author of the classic Victorian mystery stories
'The Moonstone' and 'The Woman in White'. He had
a second son, the artist Charles Allston Collins,
who was a friend and associate of the Pre-Raphaelite
Brotherhood and married one of the daughters of
Charles Dickens.
William Collins was born in London in 1788. From
a poor background, he studied briefly as a boy under
George Morland, whose paintings of rural types such
as gypsies, tinkers, and smugglers had become popular
in the 1790s. The same class of people, and above
all their children, sentimentalised and prettified,
would become the staple of Collins's art. He began
to make his name when he showed 'Children Fishing'
at the British Institution in 1810: this was an
exhibiting body supported by aristocratic art patrons,
and Collins would become a favourite of high-profile
collectors such as the Marquis of Lansdowne, the
Duke of Devonshire, Sir Robert Peel and King George
IV himself. Many of his pictures employed coastal
settings, and this became a distinct strain in his
work. Though successful, he remained modest and
diffident about his painting.
Birds'-nesting, the subject of 'Returning from the
Haunts of the Seafowl', was a popular pursuit for
young boys in the late 18th and early 19th centuries
and was equally popular as a subject for artists
portraying children. The painting shows five boys
(four of them clearly, and the head of another)
and their dog heading down a coastal cliff face,
which is surrounded by seagulls. The boys are laden
with nets, baskets and bags, but it is uncertain
if their pursuit has been successful. A young girl
stands below them, though whether she is directing
them down safely or scolding them is unclear (artists
often depicted boys birds'-nesting in the company
of girls). What is apparent, however, is the danger
of such a pursuit. The people and beach below are
distant, and the viewer can only imagine how high
the children must have climbed.
Collecting eggs was popular in Victorian times.
As this was the age of enlightenment, Victorians
thought of it as a way of classifying natural phenomena
and aiding scientific investigation. Victorian occupations
included bird catcher and birds' nest seller (a
birds' nest seller would steal birds' nests complete
with eggs, which would be then be hatched and sold
as pets).
Birds'-nesting also reflected the Romantic era's
demand for closer and more immediate contact with
nature, involving, as it did, physical exertion
and even danger in the act of climbing to awkward
locations. The rarer the egg, the more prized it
was, which in turn made it still rarer. This led
to the demise and extinction of some species.
It became illegal to take eggs from the nests of
wild birds in 1954. Unfortunately, however, this
didn't stop the practice, which continues today,
especially in the case of rare birds' eggs. The
penalty for such a crime is high and can lead to
six months' imprisonment.
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© National Museums Liverpool.
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