Robert Fowler (18531926) was a Scottish artist who painted mythological scenes and landscapes.

Biography

Fowler was born in 1853 in

Cellardyke Cellardyke is a village in the East Neuk of Fife, Scotland. The village is to the immediate east of Anstruther (the two effectively being conjoined) and is to the south of Kilrenny. History Cellardyke was formerly known as Nether Kilrenny ( S ...

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

, and was brought up mainly by his uncle and aunt while his parents were away on business. He showed a very early aptitude for art, starting first with pencil drawings then moving on to painting and clay modelling. His family moved to

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

and Fowler went to school at

Liverpool College Liverpool College is a school in Mossley Hill, Liverpool, England. It was one of the thirteen founding members of the Headmasters' Conference (HMC). History Liverpool College was the first of many public schools founded in the Victorian E ...

. At the age of 16, he found employment in a commercial office where his talent for art was recognised by his employer, who encouraged Fowler's parents to send him to art school. Fowler went to London to study at the

Heatherley School of Fine Art The Heatherley School of Fine Art is an independent art school in London. The school was named after Thomas Heatherley who took over as the school's principal from James Mathews Leigh (when it was named "Leigh's"). Founded in 1845, the school ...

and the

South Kensington Schools The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public university, public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City, London, White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design uni ...

. He also spent much time making drawings of the exhibits in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

, being particularly impressed by the

Elgin Marbles The Elgin Marbles (), also known as the Parthenon Marbles ( el, Γλυπτά του Παρθενώνα, lit. "sculptures of the Parthenon"), are a collection of Classical Greek marble sculptures made under the supervision of the architect and s ...

, and found inspiration in the local art galleries. However, his art studies were curtailed by health problems which necessitated a long period of "convalescence" in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

and

Llandudno Llandudno (, ) is a seaside resort, town and community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located on the Creuddyn peninsula, which protrudes into the Irish Sea. In the 2011 UK census, the community – which includes Gogarth, Penrhyn Bay, Craigsi ...

in Wales. While in Wales, Fowler painted landscapes, such as "View of Conwy Bay," "Old Roman Bridge Near Swansea," and "Mist on

Cader Idris Cadair Idris or Cader Idris is a mountain in the Meirionnydd area of Gwynedd, Wales. It lies at the southern end of the Snowdonia National Park near the town of Dolgellau. The peak, which is one of the most popular in Wales for walkers and hik ...

." He moved back to Liverpool and took an art studio in Castle Street, which became his base for several decades. He exhibited his work at the Liverpool autumn exhibitions in 1875, and at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

, London, in 1876. He designed posters for the

Walker Gallery The Walker Art Gallery is an art gallery in Liverpool, which houses one of the largest art collections in England outside London. It is part of the National Museums Liverpool group. History of the Gallery The Walker Art Gallery's collection ...

, and also had work exhibited abroad in Paris and Munich. His studio became a magnet for other artists, writers and musicians. He moved to London in the early 1900s and had a studio in Tite street,

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

for some years.Tite Street studio
/ref> Fowler also illustrated a number of children's books, including work by Alice Corkran and

G. A. Henty George Alfred Henty (8 December 1832 – 16 November 1902) was an English novelist and war correspondent. He is most well-known for his works of adventure fiction and historical fiction, including ''The Dragon & The Raven'' (1886), ''For The ...

. Fowler became a member of the

Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours The Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours (RI), initially called the New Society of Painters in Water Colours, is one of the societies in the Federation of British Artists, based in the Mall Galleries in London. History In 1831 the so ...

(RI) in 1891, and the

Royal Society of Painters in Water Colours The Royal Watercolour Society is a British institution of painters working in watercolours. The Society is a centre of excellence for water-based media on paper, which allows for a diverse and interesting range of approaches to the medium of wat ...

. His style was classical – frequently drawing on mythological themes – but also with strong elements of

symbolism Symbolism or symbolist may refer to: Arts * Symbolism (arts), a 19th-century movement rejecting Realism ** Symbolist movement in Romania, symbolist literature and visual arts in Romania during the late 19th and early 20th centuries ** Russian sy ...

and

Japonism ''Japonisme'' is a French term that refers to the popularity and influence of Japanese art and design among a number of Western European artists in the nineteenth century following the forced reopening of foreign trade with Japan in 1858. Japon ...

. Artists who influenced Fowler included

Frederic Leighton Frederic Leighton, 1st Baron Leighton, (3 December 1830 – 25 January 1896), known as Sir Frederic Leighton between 1878 and 1896, was a British painter, draughtsman, and sculptor. His works depicted historical, biblical, and classical subjec ...

, Albert Moore, George Watts,

James Whistler James Abbott McNeill Whistler (; July 10, 1834July 17, 1903) was an American painter active during the American Gilded Age and based primarily in the United Kingdom. He eschewed sentimentality and moral allusion in painting and was a leading pr ...

, Frederick Walker and David Woodlock (1842–1929).

List of selected works

*''Eve'' *''Ariel'' *''A Naiad'' *''Dance of Salome'' (1885) *''A World of Colours'' (1887) *''The Nymph'' *''Girl with Poppies'' *''Sleep'' (1893) *''Butterflies'' (1895) *''The Streamlet,'' *''he Coming of Apollo'' *''The Enchanted Glade'' *''The Silver Shell'' *''The Butterfly'' *''Aphrodite'' *''Venus and Cupid'' *''Dreaming'' *''Widow's Mite'' *''The Necklace'' *''The Voice of Spring'' *''Merlin and the Enchanted Princess'' (or "Charity") *''Stars of the Summer Night'' *''After Music'' *''He Loves Me He Loves Me Not'' *''Mist on Cader Idris'' *''View of Conwy Bay'' Some of his landscapes were included as illustrations in Wilmot-Buxton's travel book "Wales" (A & C Black, 1911).

Gallery

File:Robert Fowler - Women of Phoenicia, 1879.jpg, ''Women of Phoenicia'' (1879) File:Dance of Salome.jpg, ''The Dance of Salome'' (1885) File:Old Roman bridge near Swansea.jpg, ''Old Roman Bridge near

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

'' File:The Birth of Venus by Robert Fowler.jpg, ''The Birth of Venus'' File:Mist on Cader Idris.jpg, ''Mist on Cader Idris''

Notes

Bibliography (and references)

*
Studio international, Volume 9
' (London, Cory, Adams & Mackay etc., 1897) pp. 85–98. *
The Magazine of Art, Volume 22
' (Cassell, 1898) pp. 3–11 *Wilmot-Buxton, E. M & Fowler, Robert (illustrator).
Wales
' (A & C Black, 1911) *Mayo, Ralph. ''In search of Robert Fowler R.I. Victorian Artist'' (Trafford Pub., 2004)

External links and references

*
Paintings by Fowler
(Art Renewal Center Museum)
Dance of Salome
(Christie's) * Mist on Cader Idris

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, Robert 19th-century Scottish painters Scottish male painters 20th-century Scottish painters Scottish illustrators Scottish landscape painters Scottish watercolourists People educated at Liverpool College People from Anstruther 1853 births 1926 deaths Members of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours 19th-century Scottish male artists 20th-century Scottish male artists