William Henry Hunt (painter)
Encyclopedia
William Henry Hunt was an English
watercolour painter
.
He was born near Long Acre and was a resident of Marchmont Street, London
, and was apprenticed in about 1805 to John Varley
, the landscape-painter, with whom he remained five or six years. He exhibited three oil pictures at the Royal Academy
in 1807. He became connected with the Society of Painters in Water Colours at its beginning, and was elected an associate in 1824 and a full member in 1827. Until the year of his death, he was one of the most prolific contributors to the Society's exhibitions. Many years of Hunt's uneventful but industrious life were spent at Hastings
. He died of apoplexy
.
Hunt was one of the creators of the English school of watercolour painting. His subjects, especially those of his later life, are extremely simple; but, by the delicacy, humour and fine power of their treatment, they rank second to works of the highest art only. Considered technically, his works exhibit all the resources of the watercolour painter's craft, from the purest transparent tinting to the boldest use of gouache
, rough paper and scraping for texture. His sense of color is perhaps as true as that of any English artist. He was, says John Ruskin
, all in all, the finest ever painter of still life
. Several characteristic examples of Hunt's work, as the "Boy and Goat," "Brown Study and Plums," "Primroses and Birds' Nests" are in the Victoria and Albert Museum
.
In his lifetime, Hunt earned special notice for the accuracy and fine detail of his still lifes with birds' nests, as with the aforementioned "Primroses and Birds' Nests"—so much so that he acquired the nickname "Bird's Nest" Hunt.http://www.leicestergalleries.com/provenart/dealer_stock_details.cgi?d_id=&a_id=15012 http://www.masterworksartgallery.com/William-Henry-Hunt/William-Henry-Hunt-Chaffinch-Nest-and-May-Blossom-.html
A patron of his was Dr Thomas Monro, the Principal Physician of Bedlam.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
watercolour painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
.
He was born near Long Acre and was a resident of Marchmont Street, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and was apprenticed in about 1805 to John Varley
John Varley (painter)
John Varley was an English watercolour painter and astrologer, and a close friend of William Blake. They collaborated in 1819–1820 on the book Visionary Heads, written by Varley and illustrated by Blake...
, the landscape-painter, with whom he remained five or six years. He exhibited three oil pictures at the Royal Academy
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...
in 1807. He became connected with the Society of Painters in Water Colours at its beginning, and was elected an associate in 1824 and a full member in 1827. Until the year of his death, he was one of the most prolific contributors to the Society's exhibitions. Many years of Hunt's uneventful but industrious life were spent at Hastings
Hastings
Hastings is a town and borough in the county of East Sussex on the south coast of England. The town is located east of the county town of Lewes and south east of London, and has an estimated population of 86,900....
. He died of apoplexy
Apoplexy
Apoplexy is a medical term, which can be used to describe 'bleeding' in a stroke . Without further specification, it is rather outdated in use. Today it is used only for specific conditions, such as pituitary apoplexy and ovarian apoplexy. In common speech, it is used non-medically to mean a state...
.
Hunt was one of the creators of the English school of watercolour painting. His subjects, especially those of his later life, are extremely simple; but, by the delicacy, humour and fine power of their treatment, they rank second to works of the highest art only. Considered technically, his works exhibit all the resources of the watercolour painter's craft, from the purest transparent tinting to the boldest use of gouache
Gouache
Gouache[p], also spelled guache, the name of which derives from the Italian guazzo, water paint, splash or bodycolor is a type of paint consisting of pigment suspended in water. A binding agent, usually gum arabic, is also present, just as in watercolor...
, rough paper and scraping for texture. His sense of color is perhaps as true as that of any English artist. He was, says John Ruskin
John Ruskin
John Ruskin was the leading English art critic of the Victorian era, also an art patron, draughtsman, watercolourist, a prominent social thinker and philanthropist. He wrote on subjects ranging from geology to architecture, myth to ornithology, literature to education, and botany to political...
, all in all, the finest ever painter of still life
Still life
A still life is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which may be either natural or man-made...
. Several characteristic examples of Hunt's work, as the "Boy and Goat," "Brown Study and Plums," "Primroses and Birds' Nests" are in the Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
.
In his lifetime, Hunt earned special notice for the accuracy and fine detail of his still lifes with birds' nests, as with the aforementioned "Primroses and Birds' Nests"—so much so that he acquired the nickname "Bird's Nest" Hunt.http://www.leicestergalleries.com/provenart/dealer_stock_details.cgi?d_id=&a_id=15012 http://www.masterworksartgallery.com/William-Henry-Hunt/William-Henry-Hunt-Chaffinch-Nest-and-May-Blossom-.html
A patron of his was Dr Thomas Monro, the Principal Physician of Bedlam.