This radiant mid-19th-century oil painting by British artist George Cole RBA (1810-1883) depicts a mountainous landscape with a lake and grazing sheep. Cole was a consummate Victorian painter of landscapes and animals. He was the father of George Vicat Cole RA (1833-1893).

Nestled into craggy scenery, four sheep graze amid the glare of the sun, lazily picking through abundant foliage. The conditions are perfect - a warming heat tempered by a gentle breeze. In the foreground, the details are masterly - leafy ferns rendered with dextrous handling. While beyond, the lake’s tinted reflection is entirely believable - naturalism at its finest. It’s possibly North Wales where Cole painted often and it’s intriguing that, in 1867, a piece titled ‘Pastoral Scene in North Wales’ was loaned to an exhibition in Truro.

Did you spot the building in the distance? Such a view for the residents.

Born in Portsmouth, Cole’s pathway into art was a little unconventional. During his formative years, he undertook an apprenticeship in the local Royal Navy dockyard with a ship’s painter, before working for a travelling zoo. In a letter published in the Victorian press, an admirer explained that “during this eminent artist's early struggles, he travelled with Wombwell's Wild Beast Menagerie, executed the scenery for display outside their show, and painted the animals with such vigour and of such a size that the exhibition proved a great success.”

From here, he produced numerous works for the landed gentry, based upon the style of earlier Dutch artists. These were often earthy in tone, rugged, and featured animals. His ‘A Summer Landscape With Donkeys By A Road’ from 1843 is a good example. 

He also produced portraits of dapper aristocrats atop their trusted hunters, including for John Peale.

His early efforts earned him a debut at the Society of Artists in 1838 with ‘The Farm Yard’, where he was elected a member just eleven years later. In 1849, he debuted at the Royal Academy.

During the 1850s, Cole’s approach evolved with the changing times and he adopted a style that was a great deal more natural. Perhaps inspired by the musings of the art critic John Ruskin and the subsequent Pre-Raphealite painters, such as William Holman Hunt (1827-1910), he began to enliven his views with saturated colours and exquisite details. From hereon, vivid colouring became a key tenet of his oeuvre.

The 1850s also saw him working alongside his son, George Vicat Cole, who would become one of the finest proponents of British naturalism. The pair travelled together and sketched the same scenes - often along picturesque rivers, such as the Wye and Teign. Indeed, river views would become Vicat Cole’s raison d'être later in life.

George Cole’s adaptability enabled him to remain in the spotlight as he transitioned from the old Dutch-inspired style of the earlier decades into painting ‘the truth’. In 1864, he was awarded a medal by the Society for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts for a landscape that represented a “truthful and brilliant effect of sunshine after rain”.

Towards the end of his career, he often looked to Autumn for inspiration, producing tranquil views of shimmering waterways amid tepid conditions, which are equally enchanting.

The Echo described him as “a self-taught genius, whose career illustrates the power of strenuous application and perseverance to conquer untoward circumstances”. While, The Mail celebrated his “perseverance and courageous hard work”, and how he “fought his way and won eminence”. His son Alfred Benjamin Cole (1840-1893) was also an artist.

He’s represented in numerous public collections including at Bristol Museum & Art Gallery, Manchester Art Gallery, Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum, and Southampton City Art Gallery.

Signed/dated in the lower left and held in a later frame.

Learn more about George Cole in our directory.

Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 35½” x 25½” / 90cm x 65cm
Year of creation: 1866 
Labels & Inscriptions: Labelled with the artist’s bio on reverse. Christie’s stencil.
Provenance: Private collection, UK.
Condition: Cleaned. Canvas relined. Areas of fine and settled craquelure, as you would expect. The paint layer is stable. Frame in good condition with minor age-related wear.
Artist’s auction maximum: £77,773 for ‘A Cornfield, Harvesting (1866)’, Oil on canvas, Sotheby’s, Victorian Paintings, London, 21 March 1990 (lot 64).
Our reference: BRV2101