FROM PRE-RAPHAELITE PAINTER TO COLLECTOR/CONNOISSEUR
HENRY WALLIS
Dr Dennis T. Lanigan is a well-known PreRaphaelite collector. He has written articles for the Journal of Pre-Raphaelite Studies and The Review of the Pre-Raphaelite Society. After studying philosophy at the University of Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium), Ronald Lessens published numerous books and articles on European intelligentsia, including William Herschel, Virginia Woolf and Henry Wallis.
Ronald Lessens Dennis T. Lanigan
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The Death of Chatterton hangs in Tate Britain, a resplendent depiction of tragedy. This is the canvas that earned Henry Wallis his lasting legacy. It embodies the Pre-Raphaelite aesthetic, from its morbid subject – Thomas Chatterton, the precocious 18th-century poet who poisoned himself to escape poverty, aged just seventeen – to its vibrant colourwork and dynamic, chiaroscuro style. This is the first holistic appraisal of the painter, celebrated for his masterpieces The Death of Chatterton and The Stonebreaker. As well as acknowledging Wallis’s expertise as a colourist and draughtsman, it pays respect to his lesser-known, but important accomplishments as both collector and art connoisseur.
HENRY WALLIS (1830-1916)
FROM PRE-RAPHAELITE PAINTER TO COLLECTOR/CONNOISSEUR
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The extensively researched illustrated catalogue raisonné gathers every piece of information available – including provenance, exhibitions and contemporary reviews – for all identifiable works in the painter’s name. The appendices present a wealth of important information: lists of exhibitions around the world that included Wallis’s works during his lifetime; objects collected by Wallis housed in the V&A and British Museum; personal information; and a selection of previously unpublished letters between Wallis and leading lights of the Pre-Raphaelite circle – Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Holman Hunt, Edward Burne-Jones and William Morris – which provides a fascinating insight into their lives and concerns. This comprehensive study demonstrates the full range of Henry Wallis’s contributions to the world of Victorian art.
Front cover: The Death of Chatterton (detail); 1855-56; oil on canvas; see Cat. 22
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Image by permission of Tate Britain, London
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The biographical chapters chart his personal life: the infamous affair with Mary Ellen Meredith, his travels – particularly to Italy and Egypt – his interest in archaeology and work with Flinders Petrie, and his acquaintances and friendships within the Pre-Raphaelite circle. Wallis had wide collecting interests that encompassed fine arts, manuscripts, metal work, glassware, antiquities and fabrics, including oriental rugs. In particular, Wallis was an expert in Islamic ceramics and sourced many items for both the British Museum and the V&A.
Back cover: After the Trial: Antonio receiving the Congratulations of his Friends (Antonio is released from Shylock’s Bond) (The Merchant of Venice, Act IV, Scene 1); 1879; watercolour; private collection; see Cat. 125
ISBN: 978-1-78884-027-9
ËxHSLHSIy840279zv&:':+:!:+ £45.00/$60.00
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Ronald Lessens • Dennis T. Lanigan
Image courtesy of Bonhams, London
CONTENTS
© 2019 Ronald Lessens and Dennis Lanigan World copyright reserved
Preface 8
ISBN: 978-1-78884-027-9
PART I - AN UNCOMMON LIFE
The rights of Ronald Lessens and Dennis Lanigan to be identified as authors of this work have been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library The authors and publisher gratefully acknowledge the permission granted to reproduce the copyright material in this book. Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders and to obtain their permission for the use of copyright material. The publisher apologises for any errors or omissions in the text and would be grateful if notified of any corrections that should be incorporated in future reprints or editions of this book.
Cover: The Death of Chatterton [Cat. 22] 1855-56; oil on canvas 62.2 x 93.3 cm. (241/2 x 36 in.) Image by permission of Tate Britain, London
Endpapers: Chromolithographs by W. Griggs after Wallis’s original watercolours of lustre vases from Notes on some Examples of Early Persian Lustre Ware, published in 1889 [see: Cat. 216]. Frontispiece: Study of a Young Woman Standing [Cat. 70] c.late 1860s; black and white chalk with brown wash on blue-grey laid paper 51.5 x 33.5 cm. (205/16 x 133/16 in.) Image by permission of Birmingham Museums Trust.
Title page: Henry Wallis c.1890 Cabinet photo Image by permission of the Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, MS Eng.e.3396.
Chapter One: Childhood and Studies Chapter Two: Paris - The Atelier Gleyre Chapter Three: The Royal Academy and its Rivals: Wallis and the Victorian Art World Chapter Four: The Pre-Raphaelite Circle Chapter Five: The Meredith Affair Chapter Six: The “Widower” Chapter Seven: The Journey to Egypt Chapter Eight: The Archaeologist-Collector/Connoisseur Chapter Nine: Protection of Ancient Buildings Chapter Ten: Wallis – The Man Chapter Eleven: Wallis – The Artist
12 16 20 25 34 43 47 52 60 63 67
PART II – AN ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE OF WORKS
Introduction and Catalogue Notes General – Cats.1-203 Illustrations to Persian Ceramic Art – Cats. 204-211 General – Cats. 212-265 Sheets from Sketchbooks – Cats. 266-307 Sheets from Sketchbooks in Public Collections – Cats. 308-369 Addendum – Cats. 370-373
74 75 176 178 198 212 216
APPENDICES
I. Exhibitions of Wallis’s Works During his Lifetime 219 II. A Selection of Unpublished Letters 228 III. The Wallis objects at the V&A and at the British Museum 265 IV. Personal information: Timeline 276 Wallis’s Addresses 277 Family Tree 277 Last Will and Testament 278 Endnotes 279 Bibliography 295 Acknowledgements 308
Printed in China for ACC Art Books Ltd., Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP12 4SD, UK
INDEXES:
www.accartbooks.com
Known Works General
4
309
5
CONTENTS
© 2019 Ronald Lessens and Dennis Lanigan World copyright reserved
Preface 8
ISBN: 978-1-78884-027-9
PART I - AN UNCOMMON LIFE
The rights of Ronald Lessens and Dennis Lanigan to be identified as authors of this work have been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library The authors and publisher gratefully acknowledge the permission granted to reproduce the copyright material in this book. Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders and to obtain their permission for the use of copyright material. The publisher apologises for any errors or omissions in the text and would be grateful if notified of any corrections that should be incorporated in future reprints or editions of this book.
Cover: The Death of Chatterton [Cat. 22] 1855-56; oil on canvas 62.2 x 93.3 cm. (241/2 x 36 in.) Image by permission of Tate Britain, London
Endpapers: Chromolithographs by W. Griggs after Wallis’s original watercolours of lustre vases from Notes on some Examples of Early Persian Lustre Ware, published in 1889 [see: Cat. 216]. Frontispiece: Study of a Young Woman Standing [Cat. 70] c.late 1860s; black and white chalk with brown wash on blue-grey laid paper 51.5 x 33.5 cm. (205/16 x 133/16 in.) Image by permission of Birmingham Museums Trust.
Title page: Henry Wallis c.1890 Cabinet photo Image by permission of the Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, MS Eng.e.3396.
Chapter One: Childhood and Studies Chapter Two: Paris - The Atelier Gleyre Chapter Three: The Royal Academy and its Rivals: Wallis and the Victorian Art World Chapter Four: The Pre-Raphaelite Circle Chapter Five: The Meredith Affair Chapter Six: The “Widower” Chapter Seven: The Journey to Egypt Chapter Eight: The Archaeologist-Collector/Connoisseur Chapter Nine: Protection of Ancient Buildings Chapter Ten: Wallis – The Man Chapter Eleven: Wallis – The Artist
12 16 20 25 34 43 47 52 60 63 67
PART II – AN ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE OF WORKS
Introduction and Catalogue Notes General – Cats.1-203 Illustrations to Persian Ceramic Art – Cats. 204-211 General – Cats. 212-265 Sheets from Sketchbooks – Cats. 266-307 Sheets from Sketchbooks in Public Collections – Cats. 308-369 Addendum – Cats. 370-373
74 75 176 178 198 212 216
APPENDICES
I. Exhibitions of Wallis’s Works During his Lifetime 219 II. A Selection of Unpublished Letters 228 III. The Wallis objects at the V&A and at the British Museum 265 IV. Personal information: Timeline 276 Wallis’s Addresses 277 Family Tree 277 Last Will and Testament 278 Endnotes 279 Bibliography 295 Acknowledgements 308
Printed in China for ACC Art Books Ltd., Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP12 4SD, UK
INDEXES:
www.accartbooks.com
Known Works General
4
309
5
Part One
An Uncommon Life
10
11
Part One
An Uncommon Life
10
11
Chapter Three
THE ROYAL ACADEMY AND ITS RIVALS: WALLIS AND THE VICTORIAN ART WORLD
Wallis, like all artists of his generation, had a wide choice of exhibiting venues to which he could submit works. Early in his career his paintings were primarily exhibited at the Royal Academy. At the time when Joshua Reynolds was President, the Academy had its premises at Somerset House (presently housing the Courtauld Institute of Art), but in 1837 the government took the building over for their own administration,1 and from then on, the Royal Academy shared the buildings of the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square. Finally, in 1868, it found its current location in an imposing building at Burlington House, Piccadilly. One can hardly imagine today the prestige that surrounded the R.A.s and the A.R.A.s in the Victorian era, but it was considerable, and the full members in particular were able to sell their works at a high price. At a time when the average salary was less than £100 a year, some Academicians could easily earn up to £5,000 per annum.2 It was not easy during the 1850s to challenge 20
the monopoly of the Royal Academy if one wished to be considered a serious artist. It was the natural place to start one’s career, and even the PreRaphaelites followed this path. Wallis regularly exhibited at the R.A. between 1854 and 1877. Although the 1850s were his years of greatest success, with masterpieces such as Chatterton and The Stonebreaker, even well into the 1870s he continued to draw the critics’ attention with works such as A Despatch from Trebizond and Fugitives from Constantinople. Wallis stopped exhibiting at the Royal Academy in 1877, the very year that the Grosvenor Gallery opened its doors, but in Wallis’s case a link does not seem to exist between the two. Holman Hunt was never elected an A.R.A; in his letters to Wallis, he constantly criticised the Royal Academy so it is possible that Hunt’s arguments eventually induced Wallis to cease exhibiting there. Hunt and Wallis were not the only ones disaffected by the policies of the Royal Academy. Thomas Armstrong
Charles West Cope RA (1811 - 1890), The Council of the Royal Academy selecting Pictures for the Exhibition, 1875, oil on canvas, 1876 This painting shows the Council of the R.A. selecting pictures for the Summer exhibition of 1875. Wallis had two works selected that year, Fugitives from Constantinople (No. 386) and On the Ponte Della Paglia; Going to the Council (No. 405). © Royal Academy of Arts, London; photographer: John Hammond
stopped exhibiting there the same year as Wallis. In 1877 William Bell Scott also launched his own attack on the Academy. According to W.E. Fredeman, Scott’s avowed purpose was “to expose the total inability of the Academy to represent in any adequate sense the artists of England in the seventh decade of the 19th century. Its restrictive membership (40 R.A.’s and 20 Associates) limits arbitrarily and invidiously the recognition that competent British artists have every right to expect, and he accuses the Academy of being no more than a ‘trade monopoly’, committed to the perpetuation of ‘modest mediocrity’.”3 Attacking the Royal Academy was not a new phenomenon, opposition to the institution had started early in the nineteenth century: “The main substance of the complaints was that Academies in general were of no use and that the Royal Academy in particular was unfair to artists who were not numbered in its membership.”4 At the time of Wallis’s studentship, Sir Martin Archer Shee (1769-1850) was the President, but his successor Sir Charles Eastlake (1793-1865) achieved some significant improvements, such as opening its doors to engravers and women artists. As early as 1859, violent opposition came from anonymous writers who called themselves “the Council of Four” and who stated in their Royal Academy Review5 that “the Royal Academy has survived – a self-elected, self-governing, self-serving conclave, appropriating to itself a large revenue derived through others excluded from its management or enjoyment” and that “the Institution has done little or nothing for art. As a school it is not successful. The most excellent painters are those who either were not distinguished students, or those who have emancipated themselves from the Academical instruction.”6 A criticism that dominated the whole century was that “the rule which constitute the Royal Academicians – who are themselves exhibitors – to be the arbiters and judges of the whole of the pictures sent for selection, – which enables them to exhibit eight pictures, no matter what their size or merit, and which afford to them the very best positions on the walls or right, are every one of them bad and unjust.”7 In 1863, a Commission was set up to inquire into the position of the Royal Academy which met for the first time on 13 January 1863 under the chairmanship of Lord Elcho.8 Among the witnesses were artists, including Mulready, Landseer, Holman Hunt and Millais, art critics, such as Ruskin, and three Members of Parliament. The final report was very much in the Academy’s favour. Nevertheless, several recommendations were made, including: that more architects and sculptors should be elected to bring the total number of Academicians to 50; that the number of
Associates should also be increased to 50; and that they should have equal rights with Academicians in running the Academy’s affairs.9 Most of these suggestions for reform were ignored, however. During the 1870s, Hunt’s and Wallis’s opposition to the Academy expanded and Hunt said that his remedies “would be to limit membership to ten years, no past member being eligible for reelection; that the duties should be to analyse artists’ materials and guard against adulteration, and to manage the schools, appointing a supervisor in the full vigour of his faculties; that elections should be made not by the body itself but by every exhibitor of three years’ standing; and that the title should signify simply that the person was an important and respected member of his profession.”10 In 1878, Frederic Leighton became President and, during his tenure, he improved the teaching and a new life-school was set up. These measures seemed insufficient to the opponents, which is why artists, among them Holman Hunt and Walter Crane, sought the aid of the press and published their first article concerning reforms in the Pall Mall Gazette in June 1885. Marion H. Spielman summarized the points on which reform was demanded as follows: 1. An alteration in (a) the test-examination for admission to the schools, and (b) the teaching after admission is obtained; 2. The recognition of (a) water-colour painting, (b) original engraving, and (c) the minor decorative arts, and the qualification of their professors for membership; 3. A modification of (a) the present mode of election into the Academy, and (b) the constitution of the Selection and Hanging Committees; and chiefly, 4. The limitation of the number of works that any one artist may send in for admission to the Annual Exhibition.11 Finally, in 1887, a Committee was appointed to consider the proposals, but, as Spielman pointed out, the results were disappointing: “Two recommendations have been made to the Council, and await confirmation by the General Assembly: (1) No student is eligible for probationship after he or she has passed the age of twenty-two; and (2) No more than four works of any exhibitor, either Member or Outsider, may be hung on the line. ... What has been done to hint that the professors of watercolour painting, and original etching, and drawing in black-and-white merit a place as ‘artists’ in the Royal Academy? Nothing.”12 The influence of the Royal Academy was for obvious reasons regularly questioned by rival societies, such as the Old and the New WaterColour Societies. The Royal Academy did not 21
Chapter Three
THE ROYAL ACADEMY AND ITS RIVALS: WALLIS AND THE VICTORIAN ART WORLD
Wallis, like all artists of his generation, had a wide choice of exhibiting venues to which he could submit works. Early in his career his paintings were primarily exhibited at the Royal Academy. At the time when Joshua Reynolds was President, the Academy had its premises at Somerset House (presently housing the Courtauld Institute of Art), but in 1837 the government took the building over for their own administration,1 and from then on, the Royal Academy shared the buildings of the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square. Finally, in 1868, it found its current location in an imposing building at Burlington House, Piccadilly. One can hardly imagine today the prestige that surrounded the R.A.s and the A.R.A.s in the Victorian era, but it was considerable, and the full members in particular were able to sell their works at a high price. At a time when the average salary was less than £100 a year, some Academicians could easily earn up to £5,000 per annum.2 It was not easy during the 1850s to challenge 20
the monopoly of the Royal Academy if one wished to be considered a serious artist. It was the natural place to start one’s career, and even the PreRaphaelites followed this path. Wallis regularly exhibited at the R.A. between 1854 and 1877. Although the 1850s were his years of greatest success, with masterpieces such as Chatterton and The Stonebreaker, even well into the 1870s he continued to draw the critics’ attention with works such as A Despatch from Trebizond and Fugitives from Constantinople. Wallis stopped exhibiting at the Royal Academy in 1877, the very year that the Grosvenor Gallery opened its doors, but in Wallis’s case a link does not seem to exist between the two. Holman Hunt was never elected an A.R.A; in his letters to Wallis, he constantly criticised the Royal Academy so it is possible that Hunt’s arguments eventually induced Wallis to cease exhibiting there. Hunt and Wallis were not the only ones disaffected by the policies of the Royal Academy. Thomas Armstrong
Charles West Cope RA (1811 - 1890), The Council of the Royal Academy selecting Pictures for the Exhibition, 1875, oil on canvas, 1876 This painting shows the Council of the R.A. selecting pictures for the Summer exhibition of 1875. Wallis had two works selected that year, Fugitives from Constantinople (No. 386) and On the Ponte Della Paglia; Going to the Council (No. 405). © Royal Academy of Arts, London; photographer: John Hammond
stopped exhibiting there the same year as Wallis. In 1877 William Bell Scott also launched his own attack on the Academy. According to W.E. Fredeman, Scott’s avowed purpose was “to expose the total inability of the Academy to represent in any adequate sense the artists of England in the seventh decade of the 19th century. Its restrictive membership (40 R.A.’s and 20 Associates) limits arbitrarily and invidiously the recognition that competent British artists have every right to expect, and he accuses the Academy of being no more than a ‘trade monopoly’, committed to the perpetuation of ‘modest mediocrity’.”3 Attacking the Royal Academy was not a new phenomenon, opposition to the institution had started early in the nineteenth century: “The main substance of the complaints was that Academies in general were of no use and that the Royal Academy in particular was unfair to artists who were not numbered in its membership.”4 At the time of Wallis’s studentship, Sir Martin Archer Shee (1769-1850) was the President, but his successor Sir Charles Eastlake (1793-1865) achieved some significant improvements, such as opening its doors to engravers and women artists. As early as 1859, violent opposition came from anonymous writers who called themselves “the Council of Four” and who stated in their Royal Academy Review5 that “the Royal Academy has survived – a self-elected, self-governing, self-serving conclave, appropriating to itself a large revenue derived through others excluded from its management or enjoyment” and that “the Institution has done little or nothing for art. As a school it is not successful. The most excellent painters are those who either were not distinguished students, or those who have emancipated themselves from the Academical instruction.”6 A criticism that dominated the whole century was that “the rule which constitute the Royal Academicians – who are themselves exhibitors – to be the arbiters and judges of the whole of the pictures sent for selection, – which enables them to exhibit eight pictures, no matter what their size or merit, and which afford to them the very best positions on the walls or right, are every one of them bad and unjust.”7 In 1863, a Commission was set up to inquire into the position of the Royal Academy which met for the first time on 13 January 1863 under the chairmanship of Lord Elcho.8 Among the witnesses were artists, including Mulready, Landseer, Holman Hunt and Millais, art critics, such as Ruskin, and three Members of Parliament. The final report was very much in the Academy’s favour. Nevertheless, several recommendations were made, including: that more architects and sculptors should be elected to bring the total number of Academicians to 50; that the number of
Associates should also be increased to 50; and that they should have equal rights with Academicians in running the Academy’s affairs.9 Most of these suggestions for reform were ignored, however. During the 1870s, Hunt’s and Wallis’s opposition to the Academy expanded and Hunt said that his remedies “would be to limit membership to ten years, no past member being eligible for reelection; that the duties should be to analyse artists’ materials and guard against adulteration, and to manage the schools, appointing a supervisor in the full vigour of his faculties; that elections should be made not by the body itself but by every exhibitor of three years’ standing; and that the title should signify simply that the person was an important and respected member of his profession.”10 In 1878, Frederic Leighton became President and, during his tenure, he improved the teaching and a new life-school was set up. These measures seemed insufficient to the opponents, which is why artists, among them Holman Hunt and Walter Crane, sought the aid of the press and published their first article concerning reforms in the Pall Mall Gazette in June 1885. Marion H. Spielman summarized the points on which reform was demanded as follows: 1. An alteration in (a) the test-examination for admission to the schools, and (b) the teaching after admission is obtained; 2. The recognition of (a) water-colour painting, (b) original engraving, and (c) the minor decorative arts, and the qualification of their professors for membership; 3. A modification of (a) the present mode of election into the Academy, and (b) the constitution of the Selection and Hanging Committees; and chiefly, 4. The limitation of the number of works that any one artist may send in for admission to the Annual Exhibition.11 Finally, in 1887, a Committee was appointed to consider the proposals, but, as Spielman pointed out, the results were disappointing: “Two recommendations have been made to the Council, and await confirmation by the General Assembly: (1) No student is eligible for probationship after he or she has passed the age of twenty-two; and (2) No more than four works of any exhibitor, either Member or Outsider, may be hung on the line. ... What has been done to hint that the professors of watercolour painting, and original etching, and drawing in black-and-white merit a place as ‘artists’ in the Royal Academy? Nothing.”12 The influence of the Royal Academy was for obvious reasons regularly questioned by rival societies, such as the Old and the New WaterColour Societies. The Royal Academy did not 21
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neglected Pre-Raphaelite’, The British Art Journal, vol. XV, No. 1, 2014, p.54.
by Caelt Gallery, London for £30; private collection. Exhibitions: London International Exhibition, 1871, no. 275; Dublin Exhibition of Arts, Industries, Manufactures and Loans, 1872, no. 290, priced at £157 10s (lent by H. Wallis); Liverpool Corporation, Autumn Exhibition of Pictures, 1873, no. 440, priced at £150 0s. Literature: Stewart, Ann, Irish Loan Exhibitions, 1765-1927, Vol. 2, 1990, p.748. When this work was shown at the London International Exhibition in 1871 it was dated to 1865. It was entitled The Cappuccini Monastery at Sorrento – Monks playing at Boccia when it was exhibited at Liverpool in 1873. The subject of this painting seems to have been surprisingly popular in Victorian times. There was another painting entitled Monks Playing at Bowls, by the Belgian painter, Charles Hermans, exhibited at the London International Exhibition in 1871. At the Royal Manchester Institution, Exhibition of Modern Pictures, in 1867 a Mr. Graham had exhibited a painting of Monks Playing at Bowls, no. 26.1 Cat. 58. The Golden Scarf 1865; ?oil on canvas; dimensions unknown; whereabouts unknown. Exhibitions: French Gallery, Thirteenth annual Winter Exhibition of Pictures, 1865, no. 103. Literature: The Illustrated London News, vol. 47, 4 November 1865, p.438; The Athenaeum, No. 1984, 4 November 1865, p.618. F.G. Stephens in The Athenaeum writes: “Mr. Wallis’s The Golden Scarf (103) is a figure of a girl of Capri seated, with a scarf in her hand, very solidly and richly painted, lifesize.” Cat. 59. After Supper at Capri 1865; ?oil on canvas; dimensions unknown; whereabouts unknown. Exhibitions: French Gallery, Thirteenth annual Winter Exhibition of Pictures, 1865, no. 104. Literature: The Illustrated London News, vol. 47, 4 November 1865, p.438; The Athenaeum, No. 1984, 4 November 1865, p.619; The Saturday Review, Vol. 21, 24 February 1866, p.233. The critic of The Saturday Review had these comments on the work when it was shown at Ernest Gambart’s The French Gallery: “Mr. Henry Wallis deserves praise for his very true moonlight in ‘After Supper in Capri’; it is one of the most successful attempts at the colour 116
Cat. 60. Image courtesy of Sotheby’s, London
of moonlight we remember to have met with.” The Athenaeum noted: “Other pictures which merit attention are… and, especially, Mr. Wallis’s After Supper at Capri (104).” Cat. 60. Luther and Melancthon 1867; oil on canvas; 99 x 66 cm (39 x 26 in.); private collection. Inscription: Signed with HW initials. Provenance: Wallis’s studio and then by descent from the artist to his daughterin-law Alice Julyan Wallis (née Roberts) and thence to her great-niece Mrs. Vera G.
Whiting, Purley, Surrey; her sale Sotheby’s Belgravia, London, 10 April 1973, lot 194, bought by M. Katz for £480. Exhibitions: Royal Academy, 1867, no. 570; Royal Manchester Institution, Exhibition of Modern Pictures, 1867, no.3, priced at £157 10s; ?Dublin International Exhibition, 1907.1 Literature: The Art Journal, New Series, Vol. VI, 1867, p.140, p.234; The Athenaeum, No. 2065, 25 May 1867, p.697; The Illustrated London News, 25 May 1867, p.519; The Preston Chronicle and Lancashire Advertiser, 16 November 1867, p.6; Lessens, Ronald, ‘Henry Wallis (1830-1916), a
Philipp Melanchthon (originally Philipp Schwartzerd; 1497-1560) was a German theologian, professor and religious reformer who worked closely with Martin Luther in establishing the tenets of Lutheranism. It was Luther who initially persuaded his colleague to join the Reformation movement. In 1560 Melanchthon married Katherine Krapp and they had four children – Anna, Philipp, Georg, and Magdalen. Wallis has portrayed Katherine and one of the children in the foreground of this painting. Wallis’s inspiration for the present work may have come from his friend Eyre Crowe, who in November 1862, had started to work on a painting of Luther.2 Wallis may have used Albrecht Durer’s c.1526 engraving of Philip Melanchthon as his source for the image of the scholar. This painting in general was not well received by the critics. The Art Journal had these comments on this work: “H. Wallis exhibits another carefully-elaborated work, which is indeed at the farthest possible remove from the naturalism of ‘The Dead Stone-Breaker,’…We think it might be well for the painter to revert in some degree to his first manner. Certainly his present picture, ‘Luther and Melancthon’ [sic] (570), would be better for more vigour. Yet may the execution be commended for nice delicacy; the colour, too, shows refined harmonies.” The reviewer for The Athenaeum stated: “Luther and Melancthon [sic] (570), by Mr. H. Wallis, - the reformer showing a text to his friend, his wife and child seated near, - has finely designed figures of the woman and baby, much good colour throughout, delicate and tender expression, and well-rendered detail; Luther’s face is full of animation.” The critic of the Preston Chronicle voiced the opinion: “No. 3, Mr. Wallis’s picture of ‘Luther and Melancthon’ [sic]. There is much careful work and conscientious study in it, still we must confess that it is not what we expect from Mr. Wallis. The general tone of the picture is not good, and there is a want of refinement which jars upon one.” The Illustrated London News suggested: “Mr. Wallis, the painter of ‘The Death of Chatterton,’ does not well sustain his reputation with ‘‘Luther and Melancthon’ [sic] (570).” Cat. 61. Laura 1867; ?oil on canvas; dimensions unknown; whereabouts unknown. Exhibitions: Royal Manchester Institution, Exhibition of Modern Pictures, 1867, no.?; Jarrow Mechanics’ Institute, Fine Art and Industrial Exhibition, 1878, no. ?
Literature: The Art Journal, New Series, Vol. VI, 1867, p.234; The Newcastle Courant, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 12 July 1878, p.8. In terms of content, only this work’s title is known as no contemporary review can be found. In view of Wallis’s penchant for historical themes at this time, Laura may well be the great idealised love of the Italian poet and scholar Franceso Petrarch. Petrarch fell in love with Laura (possibly Laura de Noves of Avignon) at first sight on 6 April, 1327, but his love was unrequited because she was already married; she died in 1348. Cat. 62. Across the Common 1867; oil on canvas; dimensions unknown; whereabouts unknown. Provenance: Charles Gent Clement1 by 1876. Exhibitions: Dudley Gallery, Cabinet Pictures in Oils, 1867, no. 62; Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, Philadelphia, no. 169; Whitechapel Fine Art Loan Exhibition, St Jude’s School House, 1887, no. 15. Literature: The Art Journal, New Series, Vol. VI, 1867, p.269; The Building News and Engineering Journal, Vol. 14, 8 November 1867, p.769; The Athenaeum, No. 2089, 9 November 1867, p.617; The Illustrated London News, 16 November 1867, (supplement); The Chromolithograph, Vol. I, No. 1, 23 November 1867, p.15; The Mask, Vol. I, 1868, p.26; Official Catalogue of the International Exhibition of 1876, Philadelphia, Dept. IV – Art, p.65; Rowlands, Walter, Among the Great Masters of Literature, 1900, p.152. It is an indication of the high reputation of this work that it was chosen for exhibition at Philadelphia in 1876. The reviewer for The Art Journal was quite obviously impressed by this work as professed in his review of the Dudley Gallery exhibition of 1867: “Not for many as year has Henry Wallis, of ‘Chatterton,’ and ‘Dead Stone Breaker’ repute, made so palpable a hit as that truly imaginative picture, ‘Across the Common’. The canvas is brimful of nature and poetic feeling. What tone, colour, repose, settle on the face of nature! and how completely do the figures respond to the sentiment of the scene! The whole picture breathes the life of poetry.” The critic for The Building News and Engineering Journal was equally impressed: “For the Exhibition, which was opened last Saturday, must be unquestionably cheering so long as it contains such pictures as ‘Love in Oblivion’ (No. 37) by Mr. Simeon Solomon; and ‘Over the Common’[sic] (62), by Mr. H. Wallis. If there were nothing else
in the Gallery but these two pictures, so opposite and yet so admirable of their kind, we should have no hesitation in bidding all who are interested in the painter’s art (and that ought to mean all who are interested in architecture) to visit the Egyptian Hall, not so much as a pleasure but as a matter of duty…Mr. H. Wallis’s very lovely work, like Mr. Leslie’s, will be none the worse for keeping. If such a subject – a common in the twilight of a summer’s day – is to be painted at all, Mr. Wallis has done it; but the very nature of the subject makes the truthfulness of the picture its own death warrant. ‘Across the Common’ is unfortunately placed between the bright lights and colour of Mr. Poynter’s work on one side, and the snow in Mr. Mark’s subject on the other. Under the circumstances, it takes a bright day and some patience to discover all the subtle changes in the mosaic of deep tones which give to this common not only all the reality of a common, but raises, so to speak, the whole spirit of the place. The sky line of the trees, the brooding mist, the charming standing figure, are all apparent even to the passerby; but the hollows and the hillocks, the still pools, the combined sense of openness and of loneliness – which is the very essence of a common – and the marvellous modeling of the ground, are things which require looking for, and which will be found if sought.” The reviewer for The Athenaeum noted: “Mr. H. Wallis is eminently fortunate in his beautiful and pathetic figure landscape, Across the Common (62) – a study of twilight on a marshy waste, where gleaming pools among rank herbage reflect the last light of day from a sky that is full of warm-tinted autumn clouds and glows softly in purples or blushes with rich rosy tints set in a plain of greyish hues. A line of trees on the far side of the common – we will not say what common it is, lest the builder should ravage its beauty for ‘eligible sites’ – makes a long mass of deep and finely-varied colour and texture; their summits are orange with the lustre of the hidden sun. Two ladies have crossed so much of the common as the picture shows; one sits to talk, the other, bonnet-less, whose figure is too tall, although capitally designed, stands to listen.” The critic of The Mask, in a satirical account, commented: “I have no hesitation in asking Mr. Henry Wallis to stand up for the First prize. Your picture Across the Common, which natural modesty prevented you calling out of the common, is one of the finest bits of English painting it has ever been our lot to criticize. The sun, already set behind those trees, which must be somewhere near Barnes or Wimbledon; there is still warmth in the atmosphere, and if you listen you can hear the gnats buzzing, and the rooks making their beds; while the 117
neglected Pre-Raphaelite’, The British Art Journal, vol. XV, No. 1, 2014, p.54.
by Caelt Gallery, London for £30; private collection. Exhibitions: London International Exhibition, 1871, no. 275; Dublin Exhibition of Arts, Industries, Manufactures and Loans, 1872, no. 290, priced at £157 10s (lent by H. Wallis); Liverpool Corporation, Autumn Exhibition of Pictures, 1873, no. 440, priced at £150 0s. Literature: Stewart, Ann, Irish Loan Exhibitions, 1765-1927, Vol. 2, 1990, p.748. When this work was shown at the London International Exhibition in 1871 it was dated to 1865. It was entitled The Cappuccini Monastery at Sorrento – Monks playing at Boccia when it was exhibited at Liverpool in 1873. The subject of this painting seems to have been surprisingly popular in Victorian times. There was another painting entitled Monks Playing at Bowls, by the Belgian painter, Charles Hermans, exhibited at the London International Exhibition in 1871. At the Royal Manchester Institution, Exhibition of Modern Pictures, in 1867 a Mr. Graham had exhibited a painting of Monks Playing at Bowls, no. 26.1 Cat. 58. The Golden Scarf 1865; ?oil on canvas; dimensions unknown; whereabouts unknown. Exhibitions: French Gallery, Thirteenth annual Winter Exhibition of Pictures, 1865, no. 103. Literature: The Illustrated London News, vol. 47, 4 November 1865, p.438; The Athenaeum, No. 1984, 4 November 1865, p.618. F.G. Stephens in The Athenaeum writes: “Mr. Wallis’s The Golden Scarf (103) is a figure of a girl of Capri seated, with a scarf in her hand, very solidly and richly painted, lifesize.” Cat. 59. After Supper at Capri 1865; ?oil on canvas; dimensions unknown; whereabouts unknown. Exhibitions: French Gallery, Thirteenth annual Winter Exhibition of Pictures, 1865, no. 104. Literature: The Illustrated London News, vol. 47, 4 November 1865, p.438; The Athenaeum, No. 1984, 4 November 1865, p.619; The Saturday Review, Vol. 21, 24 February 1866, p.233. The critic of The Saturday Review had these comments on the work when it was shown at Ernest Gambart’s The French Gallery: “Mr. Henry Wallis deserves praise for his very true moonlight in ‘After Supper in Capri’; it is one of the most successful attempts at the colour 116
Cat. 60. Image courtesy of Sotheby’s, London
of moonlight we remember to have met with.” The Athenaeum noted: “Other pictures which merit attention are… and, especially, Mr. Wallis’s After Supper at Capri (104).” Cat. 60. Luther and Melancthon 1867; oil on canvas; 99 x 66 cm (39 x 26 in.); private collection. Inscription: Signed with HW initials. Provenance: Wallis’s studio and then by descent from the artist to his daughterin-law Alice Julyan Wallis (née Roberts) and thence to her great-niece Mrs. Vera G.
Whiting, Purley, Surrey; her sale Sotheby’s Belgravia, London, 10 April 1973, lot 194, bought by M. Katz for £480. Exhibitions: Royal Academy, 1867, no. 570; Royal Manchester Institution, Exhibition of Modern Pictures, 1867, no.3, priced at £157 10s; ?Dublin International Exhibition, 1907.1 Literature: The Art Journal, New Series, Vol. VI, 1867, p.140, p.234; The Athenaeum, No. 2065, 25 May 1867, p.697; The Illustrated London News, 25 May 1867, p.519; The Preston Chronicle and Lancashire Advertiser, 16 November 1867, p.6; Lessens, Ronald, ‘Henry Wallis (1830-1916), a
Philipp Melanchthon (originally Philipp Schwartzerd; 1497-1560) was a German theologian, professor and religious reformer who worked closely with Martin Luther in establishing the tenets of Lutheranism. It was Luther who initially persuaded his colleague to join the Reformation movement. In 1560 Melanchthon married Katherine Krapp and they had four children – Anna, Philipp, Georg, and Magdalen. Wallis has portrayed Katherine and one of the children in the foreground of this painting. Wallis’s inspiration for the present work may have come from his friend Eyre Crowe, who in November 1862, had started to work on a painting of Luther.2 Wallis may have used Albrecht Durer’s c.1526 engraving of Philip Melanchthon as his source for the image of the scholar. This painting in general was not well received by the critics. The Art Journal had these comments on this work: “H. Wallis exhibits another carefully-elaborated work, which is indeed at the farthest possible remove from the naturalism of ‘The Dead Stone-Breaker,’…We think it might be well for the painter to revert in some degree to his first manner. Certainly his present picture, ‘Luther and Melancthon’ [sic] (570), would be better for more vigour. Yet may the execution be commended for nice delicacy; the colour, too, shows refined harmonies.” The reviewer for The Athenaeum stated: “Luther and Melancthon [sic] (570), by Mr. H. Wallis, - the reformer showing a text to his friend, his wife and child seated near, - has finely designed figures of the woman and baby, much good colour throughout, delicate and tender expression, and well-rendered detail; Luther’s face is full of animation.” The critic of the Preston Chronicle voiced the opinion: “No. 3, Mr. Wallis’s picture of ‘Luther and Melancthon’ [sic]. There is much careful work and conscientious study in it, still we must confess that it is not what we expect from Mr. Wallis. The general tone of the picture is not good, and there is a want of refinement which jars upon one.” The Illustrated London News suggested: “Mr. Wallis, the painter of ‘The Death of Chatterton,’ does not well sustain his reputation with ‘‘Luther and Melancthon’ [sic] (570).” Cat. 61. Laura 1867; ?oil on canvas; dimensions unknown; whereabouts unknown. Exhibitions: Royal Manchester Institution, Exhibition of Modern Pictures, 1867, no.?; Jarrow Mechanics’ Institute, Fine Art and Industrial Exhibition, 1878, no. ?
Literature: The Art Journal, New Series, Vol. VI, 1867, p.234; The Newcastle Courant, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 12 July 1878, p.8. In terms of content, only this work’s title is known as no contemporary review can be found. In view of Wallis’s penchant for historical themes at this time, Laura may well be the great idealised love of the Italian poet and scholar Franceso Petrarch. Petrarch fell in love with Laura (possibly Laura de Noves of Avignon) at first sight on 6 April, 1327, but his love was unrequited because she was already married; she died in 1348. Cat. 62. Across the Common 1867; oil on canvas; dimensions unknown; whereabouts unknown. Provenance: Charles Gent Clement1 by 1876. Exhibitions: Dudley Gallery, Cabinet Pictures in Oils, 1867, no. 62; Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, Philadelphia, no. 169; Whitechapel Fine Art Loan Exhibition, St Jude’s School House, 1887, no. 15. Literature: The Art Journal, New Series, Vol. VI, 1867, p.269; The Building News and Engineering Journal, Vol. 14, 8 November 1867, p.769; The Athenaeum, No. 2089, 9 November 1867, p.617; The Illustrated London News, 16 November 1867, (supplement); The Chromolithograph, Vol. I, No. 1, 23 November 1867, p.15; The Mask, Vol. I, 1868, p.26; Official Catalogue of the International Exhibition of 1876, Philadelphia, Dept. IV – Art, p.65; Rowlands, Walter, Among the Great Masters of Literature, 1900, p.152. It is an indication of the high reputation of this work that it was chosen for exhibition at Philadelphia in 1876. The reviewer for The Art Journal was quite obviously impressed by this work as professed in his review of the Dudley Gallery exhibition of 1867: “Not for many as year has Henry Wallis, of ‘Chatterton,’ and ‘Dead Stone Breaker’ repute, made so palpable a hit as that truly imaginative picture, ‘Across the Common’. The canvas is brimful of nature and poetic feeling. What tone, colour, repose, settle on the face of nature! and how completely do the figures respond to the sentiment of the scene! The whole picture breathes the life of poetry.” The critic for The Building News and Engineering Journal was equally impressed: “For the Exhibition, which was opened last Saturday, must be unquestionably cheering so long as it contains such pictures as ‘Love in Oblivion’ (No. 37) by Mr. Simeon Solomon; and ‘Over the Common’[sic] (62), by Mr. H. Wallis. If there were nothing else
in the Gallery but these two pictures, so opposite and yet so admirable of their kind, we should have no hesitation in bidding all who are interested in the painter’s art (and that ought to mean all who are interested in architecture) to visit the Egyptian Hall, not so much as a pleasure but as a matter of duty…Mr. H. Wallis’s very lovely work, like Mr. Leslie’s, will be none the worse for keeping. If such a subject – a common in the twilight of a summer’s day – is to be painted at all, Mr. Wallis has done it; but the very nature of the subject makes the truthfulness of the picture its own death warrant. ‘Across the Common’ is unfortunately placed between the bright lights and colour of Mr. Poynter’s work on one side, and the snow in Mr. Mark’s subject on the other. Under the circumstances, it takes a bright day and some patience to discover all the subtle changes in the mosaic of deep tones which give to this common not only all the reality of a common, but raises, so to speak, the whole spirit of the place. The sky line of the trees, the brooding mist, the charming standing figure, are all apparent even to the passerby; but the hollows and the hillocks, the still pools, the combined sense of openness and of loneliness – which is the very essence of a common – and the marvellous modeling of the ground, are things which require looking for, and which will be found if sought.” The reviewer for The Athenaeum noted: “Mr. H. Wallis is eminently fortunate in his beautiful and pathetic figure landscape, Across the Common (62) – a study of twilight on a marshy waste, where gleaming pools among rank herbage reflect the last light of day from a sky that is full of warm-tinted autumn clouds and glows softly in purples or blushes with rich rosy tints set in a plain of greyish hues. A line of trees on the far side of the common – we will not say what common it is, lest the builder should ravage its beauty for ‘eligible sites’ – makes a long mass of deep and finely-varied colour and texture; their summits are orange with the lustre of the hidden sun. Two ladies have crossed so much of the common as the picture shows; one sits to talk, the other, bonnet-less, whose figure is too tall, although capitally designed, stands to listen.” The critic of The Mask, in a satirical account, commented: “I have no hesitation in asking Mr. Henry Wallis to stand up for the First prize. Your picture Across the Common, which natural modesty prevented you calling out of the common, is one of the finest bits of English painting it has ever been our lot to criticize. The sun, already set behind those trees, which must be somewhere near Barnes or Wimbledon; there is still warmth in the atmosphere, and if you listen you can hear the gnats buzzing, and the rooks making their beds; while the 117
Appendix I Exhibitions of Wallis’s Works During his Lifetime
Appendices
The list of exhibitions at London’s major public galleries may be considered exhaustive but not necessarily for the private galleries. Unfortunately archives for regional galleries are less complete and access often limited. Although what is presented here is by no means a complete list, it is the result of considerable research. The authors would be grateful for any further information. w = winter exhibition
BIRMINGHAM
I. Exhibitions of Wallis’s Works During his Lifetime 219 II. A Selection of Unpublished Letters 228 III. The Wallis objects at the V&A and at the British Museum 265 IV. Personal information: Timeline 276 Wallis’s Addresses 277 Family Tree 277 Last Will and Testament 278
Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery ‘The Pre-Raphaelites. Special Loan Collection of Modern Pictures in Oil and Water Colours’ 1891 No. 200 The Death of Chatterton (Chatterton) [Cat. 22] No. 201 Back from Marston Moor [Cat. 39] No. 233 The Stonebreaker [Cat. 28] Birmingham Society of Artists/ Birmingham Royal Society of Artists 1877 No. 211 The Physician – A Visit of Charity [Cat. 112] ‘Autumn exhibition’ 1876 No. 73 No. ? 1877 No. 95 No. 496
The Devotion of Sydney Carton [Cat. 106] How now, Tubal [Cat. 108] The Farmhouse by the Sea [Cat. 116] Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came [Cat. 63]
‘Exhibition of Modern Works of Art’ 1860 No. 30 Back from Marston Moor [Cat. 39] 1861 No. 176 The Stonebreaker [Cat. 28] 1864 No. 356 Pippa [Cat. 53] 1865 No. 199 A Neapolitan Girl [Cat. 54] ‘Spring Exhibition of Water-colour Paintings’ 1876 No. 73 The Devotion of Sydney Carton [Cat. 106] 1879 No. 86 In a Sacristy, the Carpet Merchant [Cat. 120] No. 562 A Welsh Mountain Lake [Cat. 113] 1800 No. 191 After the Trial: Antonio receiving the Congratulations… [Cat. 125] Private Gallery 1860
The Death of Chatterton (Chatterton) [Cat. 22]
BRADFORD Bradford Fine Art and Industrial Exhibition 1882 No. 52 Found at Naxos [Cat. 97] HUDDERSFIELD Huddersfield Fine Art and Industrial Exhibition 1883 No. 66 Dr. Johnson at Cave’s, the Publisher [Cat. 10]
218
219
Appendix I Exhibitions of Wallis’s Works During his Lifetime
Appendices
The list of exhibitions at London’s major public galleries may be considered exhaustive but not necessarily for the private galleries. Unfortunately archives for regional galleries are less complete and access often limited. Although what is presented here is by no means a complete list, it is the result of considerable research. The authors would be grateful for any further information. w = winter exhibition
BIRMINGHAM
I. Exhibitions of Wallis’s Works During his Lifetime 219 II. A Selection of Unpublished Letters 228 III. The Wallis objects at the V&A and at the British Museum 265 IV. Personal information: Timeline 276 Wallis’s Addresses 277 Family Tree 277 Last Will and Testament 278
Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery ‘The Pre-Raphaelites. Special Loan Collection of Modern Pictures in Oil and Water Colours’ 1891 No. 200 The Death of Chatterton (Chatterton) [Cat. 22] No. 201 Back from Marston Moor [Cat. 39] No. 233 The Stonebreaker [Cat. 28] Birmingham Society of Artists/ Birmingham Royal Society of Artists 1877 No. 211 The Physician – A Visit of Charity [Cat. 112] ‘Autumn exhibition’ 1876 No. 73 No. ? 1877 No. 95 No. 496
The Devotion of Sydney Carton [Cat. 106] How now, Tubal [Cat. 108] The Farmhouse by the Sea [Cat. 116] Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came [Cat. 63]
‘Exhibition of Modern Works of Art’ 1860 No. 30 Back from Marston Moor [Cat. 39] 1861 No. 176 The Stonebreaker [Cat. 28] 1864 No. 356 Pippa [Cat. 53] 1865 No. 199 A Neapolitan Girl [Cat. 54] ‘Spring Exhibition of Water-colour Paintings’ 1876 No. 73 The Devotion of Sydney Carton [Cat. 106] 1879 No. 86 In a Sacristy, the Carpet Merchant [Cat. 120] No. 562 A Welsh Mountain Lake [Cat. 113] 1800 No. 191 After the Trial: Antonio receiving the Congratulations… [Cat. 125] Private Gallery 1860
The Death of Chatterton (Chatterton) [Cat. 22]
BRADFORD Bradford Fine Art and Industrial Exhibition 1882 No. 52 Found at Naxos [Cat. 97] HUDDERSFIELD Huddersfield Fine Art and Industrial Exhibition 1883 No. 66 Dr. Johnson at Cave’s, the Publisher [Cat. 10]
218
219
Museum No.
Description
1897, 511.8 1897, 511.9 1897, 511.10 1897, 511.11 1897, 511.14 1897, 511.15 1897, 511.16 1897, 511.17 1898, 523.1 1898, 523.2 1898, 523.3 1898, 523.4 1898, 523.5 1898, 523.6 1898, 523.7 1898, 523.8 1898, 523.9 1898, 523.10 1898, 523.13 1898, 523.14 1898, 523.15 1898, 714.1 1898, 714.2 1898, 714.3 1898, 714.4 1898, 714.5 1898, 714.6 1898, 714.7 1898, 1019.1 1898, 1019.2 1898, 1019.3 1898, 1019.4 1898, 1019.5 1898, 1019.6 1898, 1019.7 1898, 1019.8 1898, 1019.9 1898, 1019.10 1898, 1019.11 1898, 1019.12 1898, 1019.13 1898, 1019.14 1898, 1019.15 1898, 1019.16 1898, 1019.17 1898, 1019.18 1898, 1019.19 1898, 1019.20 1898, 1019.22 1898, 1019.23 1898, 1019.24 1898, 1019.25 1898, 1019.26 1898, 1019.27 1898, 1019.28 1898, 1019.29 1898, 1019.30
Jug Jug Medieval Jug Jug Tile Tile Tile Tile Albarello Albarello Jug Storage-jar Albarello Albarello Storage-jar Jug Jug Bottle Dish Dish Plate Vessel 18th Dynasty Amphora 18th Dynasty Vessel 18th Dynasty Vessel 18th Dynasty Amphora 18th Dynasty Vessel 18th Dynasty Vessel 18th Dynasty Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Dish Dish Bowl Bowl Dish Bowl Bowl Bowl Kiln-furniture Jug Baluster jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug
272
Origin
Gallery location
Museum No.
Description
Origin
Gallery location
Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe
1898, 1019.31 Jug Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.32 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.33 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.34 Dish Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.35 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.36 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.37 Bowl, waster Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.38 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.39 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.40 Plate Prehistory & Europe 1900, 1006.1 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1900, 1006.2 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.4 Lamp Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.5 Lamp Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.11 Bottle Islamic Middle East 1902, 529.12 Unguentarium Islamic Middle East 1902, 529.18 Mirror-case Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.25 Finger-ring Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.29 Kohl-stick Coptic Africa, Oceania & the Americas (AOA) 1902, 529.37 Cosmetic-box Coptic AOA 1902, 529.39 Kohl-pot Coptic AOA 1902, 628.1 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1903, 714.1 Relief Greek & Roman 1903, 714.2 Relief Greek & Roman 1903, 714.3 Figure Ptolemaic Greek & Roman 1903, 714.4 Phial Hellenistic Greek & Roman 1903, 714.5 Simpulum Greek & Roman 1903, 714.7 Strigil Greek & Roman 1903, 1010.1 Vase Prehistory & Europe 1903, 1010.2 Vase Prehistory & Europe 1903, 1217.1 Vessel-cover Roman Greek & Roman 1904, 706.1 Albarello Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.3 Albarello Islamic Middle East 1904, 706.5 Cup Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.6 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.7 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.8 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.10 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.11 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.12 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.13 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.14 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.15 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.16 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.17 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.18 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.20 Vessel-case Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.25 Pot Islamic Middel East 1904, 706.26 Dish Islamic Middel East 1904, 706.27 CosmeticpPot Islamic Middel East 1904, 706.28 CosmeticpPot Islamic Middel East 1904, 706.30 Vessel Fatimid dynasty Middle East 1904, 706.31 Beaker Early Islamic Middle East 1904, 706.32 Vessel Islamic Middle East 1904, 706.33 Vessel Islamic Middle East 1904, 706.34 Bottle Islamic Middle East 273
Museum No.
Description
1897, 511.8 1897, 511.9 1897, 511.10 1897, 511.11 1897, 511.14 1897, 511.15 1897, 511.16 1897, 511.17 1898, 523.1 1898, 523.2 1898, 523.3 1898, 523.4 1898, 523.5 1898, 523.6 1898, 523.7 1898, 523.8 1898, 523.9 1898, 523.10 1898, 523.13 1898, 523.14 1898, 523.15 1898, 714.1 1898, 714.2 1898, 714.3 1898, 714.4 1898, 714.5 1898, 714.6 1898, 714.7 1898, 1019.1 1898, 1019.2 1898, 1019.3 1898, 1019.4 1898, 1019.5 1898, 1019.6 1898, 1019.7 1898, 1019.8 1898, 1019.9 1898, 1019.10 1898, 1019.11 1898, 1019.12 1898, 1019.13 1898, 1019.14 1898, 1019.15 1898, 1019.16 1898, 1019.17 1898, 1019.18 1898, 1019.19 1898, 1019.20 1898, 1019.22 1898, 1019.23 1898, 1019.24 1898, 1019.25 1898, 1019.26 1898, 1019.27 1898, 1019.28 1898, 1019.29 1898, 1019.30
Jug Jug Medieval Jug Jug Tile Tile Tile Tile Albarello Albarello Jug Storage-jar Albarello Albarello Storage-jar Jug Jug Bottle Dish Dish Plate Vessel 18th Dynasty Amphora 18th Dynasty Vessel 18th Dynasty Vessel 18th Dynasty Amphora 18th Dynasty Vessel 18th Dynasty Vessel 18th Dynasty Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Bowl Dish Dish Bowl Bowl Dish Bowl Bowl Bowl Kiln-furniture Jug Baluster jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug Jug
272
Origin
Gallery location
Museum No.
Description
Origin
Gallery location
Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Ancient Egypt & Sudan Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe Prehistory & Europe
1898, 1019.31 Jug Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.32 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.33 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.34 Dish Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.35 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.36 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.37 Bowl, waster Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.38 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.39 Bowl Prehistory & Europe 1898, 1019.40 Plate Prehistory & Europe 1900, 1006.1 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1900, 1006.2 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.4 Lamp Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.5 Lamp Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.11 Bottle Islamic Middle East 1902, 529.12 Unguentarium Islamic Middle East 1902, 529.18 Mirror-case Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.25 Finger-ring Prehistory & Europe 1902, 529.29 Kohl-stick Coptic Africa, Oceania & the Americas (AOA) 1902, 529.37 Cosmetic-box Coptic AOA 1902, 529.39 Kohl-pot Coptic AOA 1902, 628.1 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1903, 714.1 Relief Greek & Roman 1903, 714.2 Relief Greek & Roman 1903, 714.3 Figure Ptolemaic Greek & Roman 1903, 714.4 Phial Hellenistic Greek & Roman 1903, 714.5 Simpulum Greek & Roman 1903, 714.7 Strigil Greek & Roman 1903, 1010.1 Vase Prehistory & Europe 1903, 1010.2 Vase Prehistory & Europe 1903, 1217.1 Vessel-cover Roman Greek & Roman 1904, 706.1 Albarello Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.3 Albarello Islamic Middle East 1904, 706.5 Cup Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.6 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.7 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.8 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.10 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.11 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.12 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.13 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.14 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.15 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.16 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.17 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.18 Tile Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.20 Vessel-case Prehistory & Europe 1904, 706.25 Pot Islamic Middel East 1904, 706.26 Dish Islamic Middel East 1904, 706.27 CosmeticpPot Islamic Middel East 1904, 706.28 CosmeticpPot Islamic Middel East 1904, 706.30 Vessel Fatimid dynasty Middle East 1904, 706.31 Beaker Early Islamic Middle East 1904, 706.32 Vessel Islamic Middle East 1904, 706.33 Vessel Islamic Middle East 1904, 706.34 Bottle Islamic Middle East 273
FROM PRE-RAPHAELITE PAINTER TO COLLECTOR/CONNOISSEUR
HENRY WALLIS
Dr Dennis T. Lanigan is a well-known PreRaphaelite collector. He has written articles for the Journal of Pre-Raphaelite Studies and The Review of the Pre-Raphaelite Society. After studying philosophy at the University of Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium), Ronald Lessens published numerous books and articles on European intelligentsia, including William Herschel, Virginia Woolf and Henry Wallis.
Ronald Lessens Dennis T. Lanigan
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The Death of Chatterton hangs in Tate Britain, a resplendent depiction of tragedy. This is the canvas that earned Henry Wallis his lasting legacy. It embodies the Pre-Raphaelite aesthetic, from its morbid subject – Thomas Chatterton, the precocious 18th-century poet who poisoned himself to escape poverty, aged just seventeen – to its vibrant colourwork and dynamic, chiaroscuro style. This is the first holistic appraisal of the painter, celebrated for his masterpieces The Death of Chatterton and The Stonebreaker. As well as acknowledging Wallis’s expertise as a colourist and draughtsman, it pays respect to his lesser-known, but important accomplishments as both collector and art connoisseur.
HENRY WALLIS (1830-1916)
FROM PRE-RAPHAELITE PAINTER TO COLLECTOR/CONNOISSEUR
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The extensively researched illustrated catalogue raisonné gathers every piece of information available – including provenance, exhibitions and contemporary reviews – for all identifiable works in the painter’s name. The appendices present a wealth of important information: lists of exhibitions around the world that included Wallis’s works during his lifetime; objects collected by Wallis housed in the V&A and British Museum; personal information; and a selection of previously unpublished letters between Wallis and leading lights of the Pre-Raphaelite circle – Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Holman Hunt, Edward Burne-Jones and William Morris – which provides a fascinating insight into their lives and concerns. This comprehensive study demonstrates the full range of Henry Wallis’s contributions to the world of Victorian art.
Front cover: The Death of Chatterton (detail); 1855-56; oil on canvas; see Cat. 22
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Image by permission of Tate Britain, London
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The biographical chapters chart his personal life: the infamous affair with Mary Ellen Meredith, his travels – particularly to Italy and Egypt – his interest in archaeology and work with Flinders Petrie, and his acquaintances and friendships within the Pre-Raphaelite circle. Wallis had wide collecting interests that encompassed fine arts, manuscripts, metal work, glassware, antiquities and fabrics, including oriental rugs. In particular, Wallis was an expert in Islamic ceramics and sourced many items for both the British Museum and the V&A.
Back cover: After the Trial: Antonio receiving the Congratulations of his Friends (Antonio is released from Shylock’s Bond) (The Merchant of Venice, Act IV, Scene 1); 1879; watercolour; private collection; see Cat. 125
ISBN: 978-1-78884-027-9
ËxHSLHSIy840279zv&:':+:!:+ £45.00/$60.00
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Ronald Lessens • Dennis T. Lanigan
Image courtesy of Bonhams, London