This mid-19th-century oil painting, attributed to English artist George Clarkson Stanfield (1826-1878), depicts a small vessel approaching a shipwreck, close to the coast. Stanfield was an accomplished painter of marine subjects.
Stranded in turbulent waters, the once majestic form of a proud ship now rests dormant. Its ashen appearance adding a sense of elevated poignancy. Shipwrecks were a common sight off the English coast during the 19th century, due to challenging conditions and a perilous coastline. As such, artists leveraged the public’s fascination for seaborne drama.
Stanfield’s skill for rendering the heaving sea is particularly apparent here, while his use of various buoys and wreckage conveys a sense of depth. It’s conceivably a view in England, but he also worked in the Netherlands during this period.
Born in St Martin in the Fields, Westminster, Stanfield’s father was the highly-respected Royal Academician, Clarkson Frederick Stanfield RA (1793-1867), who was influential in his development. Stanfield Senior developed a fascination for seafaring, having spent his youth in the Navy and later, the East India Company. Upon becoming an artist, his respect for the potency of the sea was translated through his brush, and he produced numerous scenes of maritime theatre.
His son was evidently inspired and developed into a young artist of considerable merit, debuting at London’s Royal Academy and the British Institution at just sixteen years old. Like his father, he also travelled extensively in Europe, including various sojourns to Italy. With further trips to the picturesque Rhine Valley, Belgium, France and Switzerland.
His early talent for topographical finesse was spotted by the art luminary, John Ruskin, who, in a letter to his father, congratulated him “on the great progress made by your son in his campaign in Italy”.
Ultimately, Stanfield was walking a well-trodden path, which continued the great British tradition of marine painting, and extended back, via JMW Turner, to the 17th-century Dutch Masters. Underpinning both his compositions and his use of rich earth colours, was an admiration for the luminaries of yesteryear.
During the 1860s, when enjoying the peak of his success, he moved, together with his family, to Pond Street, Hampstead - the haunt of many painters and poets over the decades, including John Keats and Leigh Hunt. During his time here, popularity dwindled for the traditional, Dutch-inspired, approach favoured by his father, and it appears that his autumn years were challenging. He died prematurely at 50 years old.
As we cast an eye across the sparkling oeuvre of this under-appreciated painter, it’s apparent that he was one of the last great masters of his subject, who deserves his place among the better-known mid-Victorian marine painters. There’s a photo of him at the Royal Academy.
Held in a contemporary frame.
Learn more about George Clarkson Stanfield in our directory.
Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 28” x 17½” / 71cm x 45cm
Year of creation: c. 1860
Labels & Inscriptions: Inscribed with an attribution on the reverse.
Provenance: Private collection, Helsinki, Finland.
Condition: Cleaned. Faint stretcher marks. Craquelure throughout. The paint layer is stable. Frame in excellent condition.
Artist’s auction maximum: £46,552 for ‘La Punta Della Dogana à Venise’, Oil on canvas, Christie’s, Tableaux 1400-1900, Paris, France, 14 September 2016 (lot 56).
Our reference: BRV2122
