Sir William Russell Flint MACCONNAL-MASON
ESTABLISHED MACCONNAL-MASON1893SirWilliamRussellFlint RA, PPRWS, RSW, RE 14 & 17 Duke Street St. James’s, London SW1Y 6DB Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 7693 Fax: +44 (0)20 7839 6797 fineart@macconnal-mason.com Chairman: David L. Mason O.B.E. Managing Director: David M. Mason Directors: Marcus Halliwell, Sue Palmer Gallery Manager: Richard Pikesley For further details regarding provenance, exhibition history and literature, please visit: www.macconnal-mason.com Front cover (detail): Variations VI, watercolour on paper, 19 5⁄8 x 26½ in – 50 x 67.3 cm, no.15
It gives me great pleasure to present this exhibition and catalogue dedicated to the work of Sir William Russell Flint. He is rightly considered to be one of the greatest watercolourists of the twentieth century. It is the finest and most important collection of Flint’s works to be shown in the past fifty years.
An inherently brilliant draughtsman, Flint honed his skills during a comprehensive training, where he developed a meticulous eye for detail and an uncompromisingly high standard, which was maintained throughout his career. While his subject matter is enormously diverse, it is the stunning figurative compositions that define him and I am delighted to offer this selection which includes some of his very finest original works. The Dance of a Thousand Flounces, one of his most sought after reproductions, is an undoubted highlight along with Five studies of Cecilia, a fitting tribute to his favourite muse.
Extraordinarily the collection includes three important works of the artist’s renowned Variations. Of Variation number two, Flint wrote ‘This watercolour…I believe to be the best I have ever painted’, as well as works in tempera and chalk, showing his mastery of differing mediums. Flint is often remembered as a shy and retiring man; my personal impression revealed a boundless enthusiasm and a wonderfully dry sense of humour, beneath that gentlemanly reserve. This is perhaps summed best by his words of advice, written for the Old Watercolour Society Club publication in 1923 ‘See distinctly, compose devoutly, ponder deeply, suffer patiently the wind that blows, the cold that freezes, the sun that burns…and the model that arriveth not.’
All works are available for sale and we much look forward to welcoming you to our galleries.
David L. Mason, OBE Chairman
FOREWORD
In 1962
In 1931 Flint was appointed a Member of the Royal Society of Painters, Etchers and Engravers, having studied engraving at Hammersmith School of Art prior to the First World War. He served as President of the Royal Society of Painters in Watercolour (1936–1956) and was knighted for his services to art in 1947.
SIR WILLIAM RUSSELL FLINT RA, PPRWS, RSW, RE (1880-1969)
An enormously successful artist, Flint first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1906 and in Venice from 1909 to 1914 and this latter year exhibited in Berlin views of his travels in France and Italy 1912 to 1913. He was awarded a Silver Medal at the Paris Salon in 1912. At this same period, he was commissioned to illustrate a number of classic editions for, among others, Philip Lee Warner, including Thomas Mallory’s Morte D’Arthur and Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.
Flint was accorded the rare distinction, shared by only five other Royal Academicians, of being granted an exhibition of his work in the Diploma Galleries at the Royal Academy, a tribute to his status as one of the foremost British artists of the twentieth century.
William Russell Flint was born 4th April 1880 in Edinburgh, the eldest son of Francis Wighton Flint, a commercial artist. Educated at Daniel Stewart College, Flint left school at 14 and was apprenticed to a firm of lithographers, Banks and Co. in Edinburgh, as a draughtsman, and in 1895 began evening classes at the Royal Institution School of Art. In 1900, he moved to London, where he was initially employed as a medical illustrator and subsequently by the Illustrated London News from 1903–07, studying in the evenings at Heatherley’s School of Art. It was at the instigation of Thomas Heatherley that Flint devoted himself to watercolour and travelled to Paris exhibiting at the Salon de la Societé Nationale. He also visited Holland and Belgium in the company of his younger brother, Robert Purves Flint (1883–1947), on a painting tour.
Whether in oil, tempera or watercolour, in a career spanning seventy years his virtuoso technique allowed him to depict his vision of beauty.
Flint’s success and lasting reputation lie in his extraordinary ability to portray the female form. Perhaps his best–known model was the ex-ballet dancer Cecilia Green, his muse and confidante, who appears in numerous works by the artist over a period of fifteen years.
Sir William Russell Flint is a world-renowned artist with works in Private and Public Collections throughout the UK and Worldwide.
During the First World War, Flint served as a Lieutenant in the RNVR; his wife, Sibylle, whom he married in 1905, was daughter of the Fleet Paymaster J.T. Sueter and sister of Admiral Sir Murray Sueter. Flint transferred to the RAF as a captain and served from 1918 to 1919 as Admiralty Assistant Overseer Airships. Following the war, he returned full–time to his career as an artist. He had been elected a Member of the Royal Watercolour Society in 1917, and in 1924, after exhibiting only three oils, was elected Associate of the Royal Academy, receiving full membership in 1933 and later serving as a trustee 1943–55. Flint had a significant following in the USA; he had exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago in 1922, receiving the Purchase prize that year, and continued to exhibit in the States. With his success increasing, he and Sibylle moved to Peel Cottage in Peel Street, Campden Hill in London, where they were to remain.
1 Interlude Watercolour on paper 12 x 22 in – 30.5 x 56 cm
2 The Twisted Chain, Cecilia Watercolour on paper 14 3⁄8 x 21 3⁄8 in – 36.5 x 54.2 cm
3 After the Dance Watercolour on paper 6 ¼ x 5 ½ in – 16 x 14 cm
4 The Red Portfolio Watercolour on paper 11 x 15 7⁄8 in – 28 x 40.3 cm
5 Five Studies of Cecilia Watercolour on paper 9 7⁄8 x 22¼ in – 25 x 56.5 cm
6 Jasmin Watercolour on paper 14¾ x 21½ in – 37.5 x 54.6 cm
7 Ray Watercolour on paper 8 x 5 in – 20.3 x 12.7 cm
8 The Green Skirt Watercolour on paper 10½ x 14¼ in – 26.5 x 36 cm
9 White Flounces Watercolour on paper 11 x 7½ in – 28 x 19 cm
10 The Letter Watercolour with bodycolour on paper 9½ x 14 in – 23.5 x 36 cm
11 Aspirants Watercolour on paper laid on board 20 x 27 in – 50.8 x 68.6 cm
12 Billiard Bar, Laigueglia Watercolour on paper 19½ x 26½ in – 49.5 x 67.3 cm
13 Studio Accessories Watercolour on paper 14¾ x 21¾ in – 37.5 x 55 cm
14 Cecilia in a Spanish Shawl Watercolour on paper 11¾ x 15½ in – 29.8 x 39.4 cm
15 Variations VI Watercolour on paper 19 5⁄8 x 26½ in – 50 x 67.3 cm
16 Variations I Watercolour on paper 19½ x 26½ in – 49.5 x 67.3 cm
17 Variations II Watercolour on paper 19 3⁄8 x 26¼ ins – 49.2 x 66.7 cm
18 The Dance of a Thousand Flounces Watercolour on paper 19 x 26½ in – 48.2 x 67.3 cm
19 Sunburned Pride, Positano Watercolour on paper 10¾ x 15¼ in – 27.3 x 38.7 cm
20 Annabel Red chalk and crayon on paper 9 x 16¾ in – 23 x 42.5 cm
21 Annabel at Parame Watercolour on paper 20 x 27 in – 50.8 x 68.6 cm
22 The Silver Mirror Watercolour and gouache on paper l0½ x 17¾ in – 26.5 x 45 cm
23 Ariadne Watercolour on paper l7½ x 22 in – 44.5 x 56 cm
24 Alicia’s Gold Coat Tempera and watercolour on paper 20 1⁄8 x 26 5⁄8 in – 51 x 67.6 cm
25 Rosa and Maria Watercolour on paper 19 3⁄8 x 26 1⁄8 in – 49 x 66.3 cm
SIR WILLIAM RUSSELL FLINT RA, PPRWS, RSW, RE (1880-1969) 1880 Born Edinburgh 1894 Apprenticed to Lithographers, Banks and Co., Edinburgh 1900 Moved to London, employed as a medical illustrator 1903 Employed by the Illustrated London News 1905 Married Sibylle Sueter 1906 First exhibited at the Royal Academy 1912 Awarded Silver Medal at the Paris Salon 1917 Elected a Member of the Royal Watercolour Society 1922 Exhibited at the Art Institute of Chicago 1924 Elected Associate of the Royal Academy 1931 Elected a Member of the Royal Society of Painters, Etchers and Engravers 1933 Elected a Member of the Royal Academy 1935-56 President of the Royal Society of Painters in Watercolour 1947 Knighted by H.M. King George VI for services to the Arts 1962 Awarded an Exhibition at the Diploma Galleries at the Royal Academy 1969 Died London Represented in Museums and Art Galleries throughout the world including: London, Victoria and Albert Museum Edinburgh, National Gallery of Scotland Liverpool, Walker Art Gallery Birmingham, Glasgow North America, Chicago, Winnipeg, Indianapolis
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