This evocative early 20th-century oil painting by Scottish artist Robert Russell MacNee RGI (1880-1952) depicts a farm with a track, horses, and figures. MacNee was an accomplished painter of landscapes.
Wrapped in a silvery glow, two carthorses rest by a water trough as fieldhands converse by a building beyond. Smoke rises from the farmhouse chimney. It’s late in the year, when heavy boots sink into saturated ground and hearts are warmed by a crackling fire. Dated ‘16, it was produced during World War I.
MacNee studied at the Glasgow School of Art and tended to work with a broad brush in a relatively loose impressionistic style. His harmonious portrayals are delivered in a muted palette and carry the influence of the Dutch ‘Hague School’ painters, such as Anton Mauve (1838-1888) and Jacob Maris (1837-1899).
Essentially, his views are studies of the transient effects of light, rather than exact replicas of nature’s minutiae. In this respect, they convey a certain poetic spirit - a piece of the artist himself. He travelled to various locations in Scotland including Gowrie, Perth, Fife and the Inner Hebrides in search of inspiration. Also undertaking at least one trip to Yorkshire. Farms were a frequent subject, particularly those with poultry.
He exhibited extensively at the Royal Glasgow Institute of Fine Arts, where he became a member, and also at the Paris Salon, Royal Scottish Academy, and Royal Academy in London. He’s represented at Glasgow Museum, Culzean Castle, Perth Art Gallery and Stranraer Museum.
Signed/dated in the lower left and held within a later frame.
Learn more about Robert Russell MacNee in our directory.
Medium: Oil on board
Overall size: 21” x 15” / 53cm x 38cm
Year of creation: 1916
Labels & Inscriptions: Artist biography on reverse.
Provenance: Art dealership, Wiltshire / Private collection, UK.
Condition: Cleaned. Frame in good condition with minor age-related wear.
Artist’s auction maximum: £6,000 for ‘Feeding the Chickens (1921)’, Oil on canvas, Sotheby’s, Silver and Jewels, Wemyss Ware, Scottish and Sporting Paintings, Drawings and Watercolours, Glasgow, 27 Aug 1991 (lot 1120).
Our reference: BRV1961
