Bertram Priestman (1868-1951)
| Artist Name | Bertram Priestman (1868-1951) |
|---|---|
| Title | Wharfedale Landscape with Kilnsey Crag, Yorkshire |
| Description | This gorgeous British Impressionist landscape oil painting is by noted esteemed Yorkshire artist Bertram Priestman and was painted in in 1919. The location is Wharfdale, the valley of the upper parts of the River Wharfe and one of the Yorkshire Dales. The distinctive landmark on the right is Kilnsey Crag - a huge, overhanging limestone cliff and an important landmark in Wharfedale. It was shaped by glaciers that once filled the valley and plucked away the sheer rock face thousands of years ago. Today is is a challenge for rock climbers drawn to it from far and wide. The composition is an expansive landscape view following the river Wharfe down the valley with cows in a sunny meadow in the foreground. Dwellings and farm buildings are beyond the cows and hills in the distance with Kilnsey Crag on the right, all beneath a blustery sky. Priestman is a master of dramatic skies and this one is superb. The bold brushwork and palette are stunning. This is an excellent example of Priestman's work and of the beautiful Yorkshire countryside he so loved. Signed and dated (19) 19 lower right. |
| Provenance | Priestman exhibited six paintings at the Royal Academy in 1919 and this may well have been one of them, but titles are ambiguous. |
| Medium | Oil on Canvas |
| Size | 20 x 16 inches |
| Frame | Housed in a complementary frame , 27 inches by 23 inches and in good condition. |
| Condition | Good condition. |
| Biography | Bertram Priestman (1868-1951) was born into a wealthy Bradford manufacturing family. In his youth, he was much influenced by his older half brother Arnold Priestman, who had been a pupil of Henry La Thangue. After a tour of Italy in 1886, Priestman attended Bradford Technical College followed, in 1888, by the Slade School of Art in London. He began exhibiting at the Royal Academy in 1889 and at the New English Art Club from 1894. In his paintings of landscapes and coastal scenes Priestman combined the English landscape tradition with techniques influenced by the French Impressionists such as a vigorous handling of paint and use of a bright luminous palette. |
| Price | £3000 |
