John Melhuish Strudwick (6 May 1849 in

Clapham Clapham () is a suburb in south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (most notably Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Early history ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

– 16 July 1937 in Hammersmith), was a British

Pre-Raphaelite The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (later known as the Pre-Raphaelites) was a group of English painters, poets, and art critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Michael Rossetti, James ...

painter.

Early life

Strudwick was the son of William Strudwick (1808–1861) and Sarah Melhuish (1800–1862). He attended St Saviour's Grammar School in Southwark. Disliking the idea of a business career, he took classes at the

Royal Academy Schools 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 purpo ...

in South Kensington, but was not regarded as a promising student.

Painting

In the 1860s he was encouraged by a visitor, the Scottish

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

painter,

John Pettie John Pettie (Edinburgh 17 March 1839 – 21 February 1893 Hastings) was a painter from Edinburgh who spent most of his career in London. He became a member of the Royal Academy in 1866 and a full academician in 1874. As an enthusiastic a ...

, whose style he subsequently emulated. His depiction of the ballad of '

Auld Robin Gray Auld Robin Gray is the title of a Scots ballad written by the Scottish poet Lady Anne Lindsay in 1772. Robin Gray is a good old man who marries a young woman already in love with a man named Jamie. Jamie goes away to sea in order to earn money s ...

', which was exhibited at the Royal Society of British Artists in 1873, is an example of this period. His art style, however, developed in a new direction in the 1870s when he worked first as studio assistant to his uncle Spencer Stanhope and then to

Edward Burne-Jones Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, 1st Baronet, (; 28 August, 183317 June, 1898) was a British painter and designer associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood which included Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John Millais, Ford Madox Brown and Holman ...

. In keeping with artists in his circle, he exhibited at the

Grosvenor Gallery The Grosvenor Gallery was an art gallery in London founded in 1877 by Sir Coutts Lindsay and his wife Blanche. Its first directors were J. Comyns Carr and Charles Hallé. The gallery proved crucial to the Aesthetic Movement because it prov ...

and the New Gallery in London. Strudwick's studio was in Hammersmith, close to that of

Burne-Jones The Burne-Jones Baronetcy, of Rottingdean in the County of Sussex, and of The Grange in the Parish of Fulham in the County of London, was a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 4 May 1894 for the artist and designer E ...

and

Thomas Matthews Rooke Thomas Matthews Rooke (1842, London – 1942, London) was a British watercolourist. He worked as a designer, as an assistant to other artists, and was commissioned by John Ruskin to make architectural drawings. Life Ruskin hired Rooke from Mor ...

, who had also been an assistant to Burne-Jones. He married Harriet Reed and had a single daughter, Ethel (1880–1954), who later became High Mistress of

St Paul's Girls' School St Paul's Girls' School is an independent day school for girls, aged 11 to 18, located in Brook Green, Hammersmith, in West London, England. History St Paul's Girls' School was founded by the Worshipful Company of Mercers in 1904, using part o ...

from 1927 to 1948, and was appointed a

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

. His initial success as a painter came to an end when wealthy and influential patrons such as the

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 populat ...

shipowners

William Imrie William Imrie (1836 – 7 August 1906https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1906/08/08/101793427.pdf ) was a Liverpool shipowner who owned the White Star Line The White Star Line was a British shipping company. Founded out of the ...

and George Holt withdrew their support. His painting "''When Sorrow comes in Summer Days, Roses Bloom in Vain''" was left half finished in protest at the seemingly orchestrated collapse of his career.

Style

Strudwick's paintings were done in a blend of

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

and

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

styles, with meticulous attention to detail, especially in his treatment of draperies and accessories, and leading to a very small output. Some thirty of his paintings depict legendary and symbolic subjects, sometimes employing a

lapidary Lapidary (from the Latin ) is the practice of shaping stone, minerals, or gemstones into decorative items such as cabochons, engraved gems (including cameos), and faceted designs. A person who practices lapidary is known as a lapidarist. A lap ...

technique from the Italian

quattrocento The cultural and artistic events of Italy during the period 1400 to 1499 are collectively referred to as the Quattrocento (, , ) from the Italian word for the number 400, in turn from , which is Italian for the year 1400. The Quattrocento encom ...

. He employed rich, deep colours, faces clearly inspired by Burne-Jones and sumptuous drapery. His work was regularly slated by

Frederic George Stephens Frederic George Stephens (10 October 1827 – 9 March 1907) was a British art critic, and one of the two 'non-artistic' members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Life Stephens was born to Septimus Stephens of Aberdeen and Ann (née Cook) ...

, a failed painter become critic for the ''

Athenaeum Athenaeum may refer to: Books and periodicals * ''Athenaeum'' (German magazine), a journal of German Romanticism, established 1798 * ''Athenaeum'' (British magazine), a weekly London literary magazine 1828–1921 * ''The Athenaeum'' (Acadia U ...

'', who could find little positive to say.

Death

His obituary in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' described him as "a beautiful old man... nda charming personality, exceedingly kind to young artists."

Notable works

One of Strudwick's works, "''Thy Music, faintly falling, dies away, Thy dear eyes dream that Love will live for aye''" has in recent times had two celebrated owners - writer and broadcaster Sir

Tim Rice Sir Timothy Miles Bindon Rice (born 10 November 1944) is an English lyricist and author. He is best known for his collaborations with Andrew Lloyd Webber, with whom he wrote, among other shows, ''Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'', ...

in the 1970s, and in 1987, P.C. Withers of Reading, a leading authority on Strudwick. It was originally bought from the artist by the shipowner William Imrie of 'Holmstead',

Mossley Hill Mossley Hill is a suburb of Liverpool and a Liverpool City Council ward. Located to the south of the city, it is bordered by Aigburth, Allerton, Childwall, and Wavertree. At the 2001 Census, the population was 12,650, increasing to 13,816 a ...

in Liverpool. The picture's title is from a couplet by G.F. Bodley (1827–1907), the eminent architect who was closely associated with the later

movement. Another painting, ''The Gentle Music of a Bygone Day'', sold for £276,500 at a Christie's auction in 1993.

Gallery

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Strudwick, John Melhuish 19th-century English painters English male painters 20th-century English painters People educated at St Saviour's Grammar School Pre-Raphaelite painters 1849 births 1937 deaths Artists' Rifles soldiers 20th-century English male artists 19th-century English male artists