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'Summer', 1891
Edward Atkinson Hornel
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Edward Atkinson Hornel was a
Scottish painter from Kirkcudbright. As a student
at the Trustees’ Art Gallery in Edinburgh
(1880–83) he devoted his time to freehand
outline drawing rather than painting. His training
in the Antwerp Academy under the painter C. Verlat
(1824–1890) influenced him to turn to painting.
Verlat's priority as a painter and a teacher was
for technique over theme, and he encouraged his
students to paint from life using ordinary people
rather than models.
On his return to Scotland in 1885 and through his
friendship with the painter George Henry (1858–1943),
Hornel joined a group of artists known as the Glasgow
Boys. Although the Glasgow Boys were never a formal
organisation, they became widely known in Europe
and America. Their work was not based on religious,
literary or mythological themes but drew from scenes
of everyday life and avoided excessive sentiment
and pathos.
Hornel collaborated with Henry in a series of experimental
works which moved away from the naturalistic style
of the Glasgow School towards the use of strong
colour. They worked on two paintings ('The Druids',
1890, and 'The Star In The East', 1891, now both
in Glasgow). Hornel and Henry also visited Japan
in 1894 with funds provided by the Glasgow art dealer
Alex Reid. They stayed there for 19 months but were
disappointed to find that despite the fashion in
England for Japanese prints (a fashion that had
reached Glasgow), Japanese artists were much more
interested in imitating Western art. An interesting
detail of Hornel and Henry’s visit to Japan
is that they managed to live for a short time amongst
the Japanese people before they were discovered
and forced to move back into the enclave for Europeans.
Although Hornel exhibited at the Royal Scottish
Academy as early as 1883, with the painting 'Glimpse
of Kirkcudbright', it was 'Summer', bought by the
Walker Art Gallery in 1892, that brought him to
national attention. 'Summer' marks the period when
Hornel and his friend Henry worked together, painting
pictures of young girls in woods, often accompanied
by farm animals. During that time the artists moved
away from the concerns of the Glasgow School and
explored ways to unite colour, form and theme in
paintings with an almost poetic and musical effect.
The theme of seasons and, in particular, the autumnal
atmosphere had occupied Henry in his 1890 painting
'A Galloway Landscape'.
The application of paint in thick brushwork or with
a palette knife is startling to the eye. The sharply
contrasting patches of colours such as orange against
green must have caused a surprise to the Victorian
audience used to paintings of narrative themes,
such as those in Room 5. The two girls of 'Summer'
are set opposite each other, defining the background
and foreground of the painting. The girl in the
background is seated and appears to be distressed,
while the foreground girl has a much more rhythmical
pose and moves closer to the spectator. The figures
of the girls also serve as focal points for exploring
the rest of the painting. The landscape looks like
a quilt made of patches of colour. The artist used
thick black and white paint to build only the basic
outline and form of the calves, visible in the background
of the painting. Hornel’s major concern in
'Summer' was colour rather than details, accuracy
and perspective.
During his visit to Japan Hornel enjoyed the vividness
and richness of colour in the streets where the
silk merchants displayed their kimonos and brocades.
'Summer' reflects this experience as well as the
influence of James McNeill Whistler (1834–1895),
the American artist whose painting was influenced
by Japanese art. In a similar way to Whistler’s
use of Japanese accessories (kimonos, parasols and
fans) in his paintings from 1864 to 1874, Hornel
painted Japanese motifs on the cloak of the girl
in the foreground. The use of colour and the denial
of a narrative are notable similarities between
Whistler's and Hornel's work. Since the late 1860s
artists like Whistler, Hornel and Albert Moore increasingly
viewed painting as independent from narrative content
and more related to music. In his painting Hornel
tried to capture the impression of summer as an
explosion of colour and motion rather than a specific
event.
Hornel was only 28 years old when, in 1892, the
Chairman of the Liverpool City Arts and Exhibitions
Sub-Committee P.H. Rathbone (1828–1895) decided
to buy 'Summer' for the Walker Art Gallery. Rathbone
was particularly keen to support and buy work from
young artists. However, the purchase of 'Summer'
caused an outcry from the City Council, mainly on
the grounds of the painting's lack of realism and
finish. Rathbone consistently defended Hornel's
'Summer', as well as another painting which was
under attack, 'Alps by Night' by William Stott (now
on display in Room 4). Rathbone insisted that it
was the Gallery's task to buy art from new artists,
and which might not be easily understood. There
was a debate by the Council concerning the purchase
of the picture. In the vote which followed, Rathbone's
decision to purchase the picture was endorsed by
43 votes to 5.
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© National Museums Liverpool.
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