Landscape painting in the 19th century was dominated by names like John Constable, and JMW Turner – who heralded one of the best-known movements in art: Impressionism. At the same time, there was a growing art movement in the heart of Norwich that would later come to be known as the Norwich school of painters, a circle of young artists led by John Crome and later by John Sell Cotman.
The Norwich Society was founded by John Crome and Robert Ladbrooke in 1803 “for the Purpose of an Enquiry into the Rise, Progress and Present State of Painting, Architecture, and Sculpture, with a View to Discover and Point Out the Best Methods of Study, to Attain to Greater Perfection in these Arts”, and held their first meeting at The Hole in the Wall tavern in Pottergate. The Society’s first exhibition was held two years later under the title of ‘The Norwich Exhibition of Works of Living Artists.’
The Norwich school might boast that it was the first in England to establish a society of artists united by common principles and similarities in their style, something that would become a major criterion for art movements in the future.
Brief history of the movement
John Crome, or ‘Old’ Crome as he is affectionately known, began his career as an apprentice to a house and sign painter, and through his passion became, like Robert Ladbrooke and John Thirtle, a self-taught artist. The artists were able to paint and exhibit mostly through local support and the patronage of figures such as the Gurney and Harvey families, while most of them earned their livelihood as drawing masters for the children of wealthy families.
John Sell Cotman, who became president of the Society after ‘Old’ Crome, took a different route, having left for London at a young age to pursue his passion. He sent his paintings to Royal Academy exhibitions and even became acquainted with painters such as William Turner and Thomas Girtin. Despite the potential that London offered him, he returned to Norwich and joined the emerging Society there, speaking of the city as being “not to be equalled in its quiet way by any city in the British Empire, and beloved by me.”
The Society continued after the death of ‘Old’ Crome in 1821 under the presidency of Cotman for a few years, but it effectively ceased to exist when Cotman and the two most prominent artists, James Stark and George Vincent, moved to London.
Both via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
The branching roots of inspiration
Clearly the greatest source of inspiration was the local landscape. It dominates the majority of their paintings, from Crome’s and Ladbrooke’s panoramic views of the countryside, to David Hodgson’s Norwich cityscapes and Joseph Stannard’s seascapes.
Aside from the homely scenes that were imprinted on each artist’s heart, they also travelled extensively, not only around Britain but also throughout Europe, as many of their paintings and sketches show. Henry Bright’s watercolour views of the Matterhorn and shore scenes from Holland and France, and Cotman’s sketches of Normandy and his moody landscapes from Wales show us the artists were well acquainted with a wide range of landscapes.
Since Norwich has always had close historical ties with the Dutch, it comes as no surprise that the Norfolk painters took their inspiration from the landscape artists of the Dutch Golden Age, such as Jacob van Ruysdael and Meindert Hobbema. Like the Dutch masters, the Norwich artists preferred realism and natural compositions as opposed to stylised pastiches of the classical landscape in the style of Lorrain or Poussin, who had greatly influenced the landscape painting of the Romantic era.
The influence of the Dutch school left its imprint also in the work of the female artists such as Emily and Eloise Harriet Stannard, who devoted themselves to still life painting, creating arrangements of fruit and dried flowers. Emily, supporting the family through her art after her husband Joseph’s death well into her eighties, won numerous awards and kept the craft in the family by teaching her daughter. Her niece Eloise subsequently became a painter whose works were so much in demand that she didn’t have to face the financial difficulties the founders of the Norwich school did.
Unusual for their time?
In what would later become one of the principles of the Impressionists or the Barbizon school, the Norwich painters preferred to work en plein air instead of in the studio, making use of the natural light and unembellished nature. Even Eloise preferred to paint her still life outside the studio, and it may have been the changeable nature of the daylight that gave her work such rich colours. ‘Old’ Crome was well-known to have taken his pupils on long rambles to sketch. Anecdotes from the time confirm that’s where he believed artists to be truly at school, with nature being the greatest teacher.
Aside from oil paintings, the Norwich school produced a number of watercolours, a medium not fully appreciated for its qualities at the time, although it allowed for greater spontaneity. This was welcomed especially by Cotman, who felt that oils took too much time. Aside from Cotman, John Thirtle was considered one of the greatest watercolourists of the time and his mastery of colour in his urban and river scenes surpassed many of his contemporaries.
A lasting legacy
The movement of the Norwich School remains relatively unknown outside their region since most of their works were purchased and collected by local patrons. Much of their work can still be found in Norwich Castle Museum and Mandell’s Art Gallery on Elm Hill. However, several of the paintings are now in the Tate Gallery and indeed further afield. Despite their early narrow sphere of influence and what couldn’t be considered a notable commercial success, the Norwich painters won their acclaim in time. In 1862, more than 40 years after ‘Old’ Crome’s death, his now famous painting ‘Mousehold Heath’ was sold for 400 guineas – 400 times more than its original price – and his son John Berney Crome was appointed a landscape painter to the Duke of Sussex.
The Norwich painters left a lasting legacy, not only in the field of art, indicating the future of landscape painting, but also on the face of the city, as can be seen in the imposing Kett’s Castle Villa on St Leonard’s Road, the residence of Ladbrooke’s son, John Berney Ladbrooke. They were also the founding force behind what is now Norwich University of the Arts.
More from East Anglia Bylines
Friends of Bylines Network
There has never been a greater need for grassroots journalism that investigates the stories that really matter, holds power to account and champions the voices of everyday citizens. We are proudly powered by volunteers but what we do isn’t free.
STAND WITH US for independent, citizen-led journalism that makes democracy stronger, and you will even get some exclusive benefits.
