John Middleton (Norfolk artist): Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 06:09, 25 June 2018
John Middleton | |
|---|---|
| Born | 9 January 1827 Norwich |
| Died | 11 November 1856 Norwich |
| Nationality | English |
| Known for | Landscape painting |
| Movement | Norwich School of painters |
John Middleton (9 January 1827– 11 November 1856) was an English artist, known for his work in watercolour painting. He was a member of the Norwich School of painters.
Life
John Middleton was born on 9 January 1827 in Norwich in the English county of Norfolk. Parish records show that he was baptised at St Stephen's Church, Norwich, on 14 January by his parents John and Ann Middleton.[1] His father John, who died early, was a glass stainer who also undertook plumbing and painting work and who studied and collected ferns in his spare time.[2] His mother was a painter of plants whose talents were exhibited with the Norwich Society.[3]
Middleton was educated at Norwich Grammar School. He studied under John Berney Crome and with Henry Bright, whom he visited in London in 1847. Bright so influenced Middleton that it often difficult to distinguish between the two artists.[2] Middleton exhibited before he was twenty.[3]
In 1849, following the death of his father, Middleton moved back to St. Stephen's Street in the centre of Norwich to care for his mother and to assist with the running of the family business. In 1850 they moved to Surrey Street, a short distance away.[4]
Artistic life and early death
Middleton exhibited in London from 1847 to 1855: showing fourteen pictures at the Royal Academy and fifteen works at the British Institution during this period.[5] He painted in oils as well as watercolours, and produced etchings, some of which were published separately as Nine Etchings by John Middleton, c.1852.[6]
He suffered from ill health and after contracting tubercolosis became gradually less capable of working outdoors as his illness advanced. He died at his home in Surrey Street in 1856, aged only 29.[2] When his death was announced in the local Norfolk press, it was noted that he "painted nature just as he found her in the quiet sequestered nooks which abound in this county, and many a spot, otherwise of little note, will live long on the canvas touched by Middleton’s hand".[7]
John Middleton has generally thought of by both his contemporaries and by art historians as a highly talented water-colourist. The author Josephine Walpole describes his death as "the supreme tragedy for the Norwich School", comparing his talents as a water colourist as being equal to those of John Sell Cotman and John Thirtle,[8] and in his book, Robert Brall describes the artist's talent as "precocious" and his style as "distinctive, fresh and modern".[9]
References
- ^ England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 12 February 2018, John Middleton in entry for John Middleton; citing item 3 p 191, index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 1,471,611.
- ^ a b c John Middleton (Suffolk Artists website)
- ^ a b Walpole, Art and Artists of the Norwich School, p.130.
- ^ Brall, John Middleton and the Norwich School, p.71-2.
- ^ Graves, A dictionary of artists who have exhibited works in the principal London exhibitions from 1760 to 1893, p.190.
- ^ Walpole, Art and Artists of the Norwich School, p.130.
- ^ The Bury and Norwich Post, and Suffolk Herald (Bury St Edmunds, England), Wednesday, November 19, 1856; Issue 3882. British Library Newspapers, Part II: 1800-1900. "On the 11th inst., in this city, in his 29th year, John Middleton, Esq. He had gained considerable reputation both in his native place and in London, as an artist of no ordinary promise. Though possessed of property, Mr. Middleton was passionately fond of painting, and has contributed to the pleasure of many by his life-like touches of English scenery. He did not attempt anything grand, but painted nature just as he found her in the quiet sequestered nooks which abound in this county, and many a spot, otherwise of little note, will live long on the canvas touched by Middleton’s hand. He has been cut off early, too early for his talent to be fully developed, but not too early for showing the gentleness and kindliness of his nature".
- ^ Walpole, Art and Artists of the Norwich School, p.109, 129.
- ^ Brall, John Middleton and Norwich School.
Bibliography
- Brall, Robert (2016). John Middleton and the Norwich School. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 3rd edition. ISBN 1532904010.
- Cundell, H.M. (1920). The Norwich School. London: Geoffrey Holme Ltd.
- Graves, Algernon (1895). A dictionary of artists who have exhibited works in the principal London exhibitions from 1760 to 1893. London: H. Graves.
- Walpole, Josephine (1997). Art and Artists of the Norwich School. Woodbridge: Antique Collectors' Club. ISBN 1-85149-261-5.
External links
- Works by John Middleton in the Norfolk Museums Collections
- Early Norfolk Photographs 1840 - 1860 John Middleton
- John Middleton - Suffolk Artists website