Why We Lead The World In Watercolours

From Turner’s luminous paintings on a grand scale to Towne’s meticulous landscapes and Ravilious’s soft evocations of the South Downs, Huon Mallalieu applauds the enduring legacy of the great British watercolour.

WHEN, years ago, I told the great Old Master dealer David Carritt that I was writing on the English Watercolour School, his reaction was: ‘Oh, dear—what a dead end!’ I’ve never been certain whether he meant a dead-end for my career or that the school had been one—or perhaps both. I couldn’t comment in my own case; as to the school, I take his point, but must disagree. 

Certainly, it is true that, with notable exceptions, watercolour painters have never again reached the heights of achievement and influence of their largely English forebears in the century from 1750 to 1850. however, those achievements mean that watercolour stands with poetry and novelwriting as the glories of the country’s culture. 

Furthermore, the school’s direct influence on the Continent and beyond between 1814 and 1850, and then at a distance on the Impressionists and post-Impressionists, is a lasting legacy.

It is traditionally known as the ‘English’ School, because, although it had Flemish and Dutch roots, and French, Swiss and other draughtsmen played an important part in the 18th century, the majority of its members were English and it developed a recognisable, English, character. In the 19th century, the Scots and Irish increasingly made important contributions, but, like the English language, the school blended its various ingredients into a dynamic whole.