Yale Bulletin and Calendar

September 24, 2004|Volume 33, Number 4

A.W. Hunt's 1871 watercolor "Sunset off the Morea" is among the works by the artist that are on display in the exhibit "The Poetry of Truth" at the Yale Center for British Art.

Exhibit showcases work of
long-ignored landscape artist

A.W. Hunt, a 19th-century artist credited with being one of the most original landscape watercolorists and painters of his time, is the subject of an exhibition at the Yale Center for British Art -- the only U.S. venue for the show.

"The Poetry of Truth: Alfred William Hunt and the Art of Landscape" is the first major exhibition devoted to the artist since his work was shown in memorial exhibitions following his death in 1896. It features 65 works by Hunt. The exhibition will remain on view through Dec. 12.

The exhibition was organized by the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford and the Yale Center for British Art. It was curated by Christopher Newall, an independent art historian and expert on Hunt; Colin Harrison, assistant keeper in the Department of Western Art at the Ashmolean; and Scott Wilcox, curator of prints and drawings at the British Art Center.

Although he became a figure of note on the periphery of the Pre-Raphaelite circle in London and was admired by writer John Ruskin, Hunt struggled for recognition during his lifetime, and some believe his achievements as an artist have been undervalued since, according to the show's curators.

Born in Liverpool in 1830, he was the son of a landscape painter and drawing master. He studied classics at Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and in 1851 won the Newdigate Prize for his poem "Nineveh." By then, he was already a painter, exhibiting with the Liverpool Academy from the age of 16. He became a member of that institution after his graduation from Oxford.

Inspired by the writings of Ruskin and adopting his principle of "truth to nature," Hunt developed a highly detailed and individual form of Pre-Raphaelite observation of nature in the 1850s. By the end of the decade, he had begun a long friendship with Ruskin, who praised the subtlety and keenness of observation evident in Hunt's landscapes but warned the young artist against excessive detail.

Hunt was elected a fellow of Corpus Christi College in 1857, but gave up his academic position in order to pursue his career as an artist. By the late 1860s, fearing that a narrowness of focus had descended on British landscape painting, he moved away from the brilliant color and meticulous detail associated with Pre-Raphaelitism. He took up "a more atmospheric and poetic approach to the representation of nature, inspired by -- but never simply imitating -- the work of J.M.W. Turner," say the exhibit organizers.

An introvert, Hunt was never comfortable with the commercialism of the Victorian art world or the self-promotion required of the successful Victorian painter, according to the exhibition's curators. Although he never gained recognition from the Royal Academy, he became one of the most respected members of the Society of Painters in Watercolors. Critics regularly praised his contributions to the society's annual exhibitions for their originality.

The exhibition is accompanied by a 184-page illustrated catalog, "The Poetry of Truth: Alfred William Hunt and the Art of Landscape." It includes entries for all of the works in the exhibition as well as a biographical essay by Newall, an essay by Wilcox on Hunt's articles on the state of British landscape painting, and a checklist of the extensive collection of Hunt's sketchbooks in the Ashmolean Museum. It is available in the center's Museum Shop; call (203) 432-2828 to order.

The Yale Center for British Art, 1080 Chapel St., is open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sunday, noon-5 p.m. It is open until 8 p.m. on Wednesdays through November. Introductory tours of the center are offered on Saturdays at 11 a.m., and docent-led tours of the center's exhibitions are offered on Thursdays at 11 a.m. and Saturdays at noon. For further information, call (203) 432-2800 or visit the center's website at www.yale.edu/ycba.

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IN MEMORIAM