Francis Nicholson (1753 – 1844) by Gordon Bell

Description

The forgotten father of British watercolor — restored to his rightful place at last. Francis Nicholson (1753–1844) helped invent watercolor as a serious art form, yet for more than a century after his death his name had almost vanished. Professor Gordon Bell’s richly illustrated study brings him back.

Hailed by contemporaries as a master of landscape, Nicholson helped found the Society of Painters in Water Colours in 1804 and pioneered the techniques that elevated the medium from tinted drawing to true painting. He was also a gifted printmaker and a sought-after drawing teacher whose pupils carried his influence across generations of British artists.

Drawing on scarce source material and previously unpublished genealogical research, Bell presents Nicholson’s views of British scenery from about 1790 to 1830 — quiet country lanes to dramatic northern fells — with scholarly rigor and genuine affection. For collectors, students of British art, and watercolor lovers: the essential study of a quiet revolutionary who changed how Britain saw its own landscape.

Francis Nicholson (1753–1844) was one of the founding fathers of British watercolor — yet for more than a century after his death, his name had almost vanished. In Francis Nicholson: Painter, Printmaker and Drawing Master, Professor Gordon Bell restores him to his rightful place.
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nHailed by his contemporaries as a master of landscape, Nicholson helped found the Society of Painters in Water Colours in 1804 and pioneered the techniques that made watercolor a serious art form. He was also a gifted printmaker and a sought-after drawing teacher whose pupils carried his influence across generations.
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nDrawing on scarce source material and previously unpublished genealogical research, this richly illustrated volume presents an overview of Nicholson’s views of British scenery published between about 1790 and 1830 — from quiet country lanes to dramatic northern fells. Bell, a writer on the arts who has curated exhibitions of Nicholson’s work, brings both scholarly rigor and genuine affection to his subject.
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nFor collectors, students of British art, and lovers of watercolor, this is the essential study of an artist whose quiet revolution changed how Britain saw its own landscape.