This mid-19th-century oil painting by British artist Alfred Walter Williams (1824-1905) depicts a figure dragging bracken within rugged Welsh upland scenery.
Nestled between formidable north-Walian peaks, a dilapidated cottage is near-buried under foliage. Its thatch, an amalgam of homespun repairs, its doorway bereft of adequate timber. Two sunlit trees stand alongside, akin to saintly old friends providing shade for the fallen.
It’s a tale of woe for this young desperate family, yet equally one of perseverance amid impossible circumstances. He’s gathering bracken while his wife tends to the animals. Ever-creative with the resources on their doorstep.
Alfred Walter Williams studied under his father, Edward Williams, and maintained a close relationship with his brother, the artist Sidney Richard Percy. Stylistically, the two brothers are similar, although perhaps Alfred’s works generally carry less grandiosity. Five of his brothers were painters, with some altering their surnames to avoid confusion.
Over the span of his extensive and fruitful career, Williams exhibited 76 works at the Royal Academy and 79 at the Royal Society of British Artists. He’s represented in various public collections including the V&A Museum and the Walker Art Gallery.
Signed/dated lower left and held within a later frame. The painting was previously sold at auction for £4,000 in 2001 and also through Christie’s for £3,000 in 1987.
Learn more about Alfred Walter Williams in our directory.
Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 36½” x 28½” / 103cm x 73cm
Year of creation: 1849
Labels & Inscriptions: Christie’s stencil on reverse.
Provenance: Christie’s, London, 15 May 1987, lot 37 (Landscape with figures drawing bracken), £3,000 / Auction, Godalming, 26 September 2001, lot 484 (Bracken gatherers with their animals on a hillside), £4,000 / Private collection, UK.
Condition: Assessed and approved by our conservator. Canvas relined. Fine and settled craquelure, as you would expect. The paint layer is stable. Frame with light marks.
Artist’s auction maximum: £23,763 for ‘Playing Football Outside the Gun Inn (1844)’, Oil on canvas, Christie’s, Fine Victorian Paintings, London, 1989 (lot 38).
Our reference: BRV1868
