Charles Towne
Charles Towne (* 1763 in Wigan , Greater Manchester , England , United Kingdom ; † January 6, 1840 in London , England, United Kingdom) was a British painter who specialized in the depiction of animals , especially horses , and landscapes .
Life
Charles Town was born in 1763 as the son of the Liverpool portrait painter Richard Town and his wife Mary in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, United Kingdom, which is why he came into contact with painting at an early age. His artistic talent showed up early and was encouraged by taking lessons from the landscape painter John Rathbone from Leeds , West Yorkshire . Town first worked as a painter of carriages with his brother in Liverpool. He later worked in Lancester and Manchester . In 1785 he married the widowed Margaret Harrison. In 1787 Town exhibited one of his landscape paintings for the first time in Liverpool. From then on, his career took off and by the 1790s he was already an established figure among the painters of animals of his time. His style was compared with that of the renowned animal painter George Stubbs . Town lived in London from 1799 to 1804 and even exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts at that time . At this time, Town added the "e" to his last name and changed his name from "Town" to "Towne". Towne also befriended two of his fellow artists: George Morland and Philip James de Loutherbourg . Between 1799 and 1823 Towne exhibited twelve of his works at the Royal Academy of Arts and four at the British Institution . In 1810 he returned to Liverpool, where he became a founding member of the Liverpool Academy of Arts . From 1812 to 1813 Towne was even Vice President of the Liverpool Academy of Arts. He exhibited his works here over and over again for many years. He stayed in Liverpool until 1837 when he moved back to London. Here he died at the age of 77 on January 6, 1840.
plant
Towne painted landscapes and animals - primarily domestic and farm animals such as horses, cattle and dogs , but also wild animals. So painted Towne 1820 about the painting lion and lioness ( Lion and Lioness ), which - as the title suggests - a pair of lions shows, the Lioness lying and the male standing, and 1800 which also pretty self explanatory Painting Tiger ( Tiger ). Ververben in ein Park ( Mischief in a Park ) from 1812 shows a hunting scene with deer and hunting dogs , so it is an image that shows both wild animals and domestic animals, although the wild animals are less exotic than those of the lion and lioness or tiger . Towne's preferred motifs, however, were clearly horses, cattle and dogs, in whose depiction Towne placed a clear focus on the reproduction of the musculature, which in many of his pictures is clearly visible under the fur. Examples of these are Parsons Jack Russell Terrier ( Parson's Jack Russell Terrier ) of 1828 or three horses in a stormy landscape ( Three Horses in a Stormy Landscape ) by 1836. However, people - especially riders, hunters and farmers - are sometimes the subject of Townes pictures. Not infrequently, people and animals are part of a landscape scene such as in landscape with cattle and sheep and a rider in conversation with a herdsman ( Landscape with Cattle and Sheep and a rider in conversation with a Herdsman ) of 1812. But also landscapes almost free of human and animal - such as landscape with trees ( landscape with trees ) by 1830 - and by implication urban scenes in which humans and animals clearly dominate such as in Norwich livestock fair, Norfolk ( Norwich cattle fair, Norfolk ) 1826 include, albeit rarely, on Townes subjects. Towne's paintings are usually of a rather small format, but occasionally he also painted large pictures, primarily when landscapes with cattle were the subject. The vast majority of Towne's paintings were oil paintings , but Towne was also proficient with watercolors and almost became a member of the Royal Watercolor Society in 1809 .
reception
Towne's contemporary Joseph Farrington praised his work, although he noted that Towne was a man of "coarse, debased manners and conversation". The artist Walter Shaw Sparrow said of Towne's paintings: “His landscapes are meticulously detailed and have a Dutch mannerism; Animals and humans are put into it with conscientious and tender care. ”(“ His landscapes are minutely detailed and have a Dutch mannerism; animals and figures are put in with diligent and affectionate care. ”) The Dictionary of National Biography , on the other hand, explains Towne's work “[Lacks] spirit and originality” (“wanting in spirit and originality”), “although they [would] be carefully drawn” (“though carefully drawn”).
Web links
- Charles Towne on artuk.org
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Towne, Charles |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British painter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1763 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Wigan , Greater Manchester , England , United Kingdom |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 6, 1840 |
| Place of death | London , England , UK |