Information
Brett was a skilful watercolourist, although exhibiting little in this medium. 'February in the Isle of Wight' is an exception, having been shown at the Birmingham Society of Artists in 1866. Here he evokes a clear spring-like landscape, with a wonderfully delicate handling of the tree branches. The two children almost seem to dissolve into their surrounddings. Instead, as described by Stephen Wildman, it is 'the suffused light bathing the whole vista which gives this work its striking character' This watercolour originally had a pendant entitled: 'Autumn in the isle of Wight'. With its bright, sharp colours and intense detail, this watercolour typifies the Pre-Raphaelite approach to landscape. As a student Brett had been deeply affected by the work of the Pre-Raphaelites and by the writings of John Ruskin, who had urged artists to 'go to Nature in all singleness of heart, ...rejecting nothing, selecting nothing, and scorning nothing'. After Brett exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1858, Ruskin championed his work.
- Presented by Herbert Martin, 1919.
- © Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery
Makers
Association |
Artist |
Organisation |
Artist |
John Brett |
- |
Inscriptions
Type |
Position(s) |
Method |
Date(s) |
Notes |
John Brett 1866 |
Signature and date |
bottom right |
Painted |
1866 |
|
|
Exhibitions
Catalogue No. |
Venue |
Date(s) |
Spring Exhibition |
87 |
Royal Society of British Artists |
1866 - 1866 |
|
- |
216 |
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery |
1891 - 1891 |
|
The Victorian Romantics |
139 |
Leicester Galleries, London |
1949 - 1949 |
|
Paintings and Drawings by the Pre-Raphaelites and their Followers |
10 |
Russell-Coates Gallery, Bournemouth |
1951 - 1951 |
|
- |
- |
All Saints Passage, Cambridge |
1953-04 - 1953-04 |
- |
Kidderminster |
1955 - 1955 |
- |
Fennoy Art Gallery, Kings Lynn |
1964 - 1964 |
|
- |
- |
All Saints Passage, Cambridge |
1953-04 - 1953-04 |
- |
Kidderminster |
1955 - 1955 |
- |
Fennoy Art Gallery, Kings Lynn |
1964 - 1964 |
|
- |
- |
All Saints Passage, Cambridge |
1953-04 - 1953-04 |
- |
Kidderminster |
1955 - 1955 |
- |
Fennoy Art Gallery, Kings Lynn |
1964 - 1964 |
|
Artists of Victoria's England |
7 |
Cummer Gallery of Art, Jacksonville, Florida |
1965-02 - 1965-03 |
|
- |
113 |
Tokyo |
1967 - 1967 |
|
- |
46 |
Turin, Italy |
1969-06 - 1969-08 |
|
British Watercolours and Drawings: From Rowlandson to Riley |
72 |
Peking (Beijing), China |
1982-03 - 1982-06 |
72 |
Shenyang |
1982 - 1982 |
72 |
Hong Kong |
1982 - 1982 |
72 |
Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh |
1982-08-20 - 1982-09-12 |
|
Ruskin and the English Watercolour: From Turner to the Pre-Raphaelites |
117 |
Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester |
1988-04-07 - 1988-05-13 |
117 |
Holburne of Menstrie Museum, Bath |
1989-05-26 - 1989-05-13 |
117 |
Bankside Gallery, London |
1989-08-10 - 1989-09-10 |
|
British Watercolours from Birmingham: 150 Outstanding Works from the Permanent Collection of Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery |
102 |
Tokyo Station Gallery |
1991-06-01 - 1991-07-07 |
102 |
Museum of Fine Arts, Gifu |
1991-07-12 - 1991-08-18 |
102 |
Daimaru Museum, Umeda (Osaka) |
1991-08-21 - 1991-09-02 |
102 |
Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art, Kofu |
1991-09-07 - 1991-10-20 |
102 |
Bankside Gallery, London |
1992-01-22 - 1992-03-01 |
102 |
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery |
1992 - 1992 |
|
Victorian Landscape Watercolours |
64 |
Yale Centre for British Art, New Haven |
1992-09-09 - 1992-11-01 |
64 |
Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio |
1992-11-18 - 1993-01-03 |
64 |
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery |
1992-09 - 1993-04 |
|
Visions of Love and Life: Pre-Raphaelite Art from the Birmingham Collection, England |
82 |
Seattle Art Museum |
1995-03-09 - 1995-05-07 |
82 |
Cleveland Museum of Art, Ohio |
1995-05-27 - 1995-07-16 |
82 |
Delaware Art Museum |
1995-08-11 - 1995-10-15 |
82 |
Museum of Fine Arts, Houston |
1995-11-04 - 1996-01-02 |
82 |
High Museum of Art, Atlanta |
1996-01-23 - 1996-04-10 |
82 |
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery |
1996-05-25 - 1996-09-29 |
|
L'Age d'Or de l'Aquarelle Anglaise 1770-1900 |
144 |
Fondation de l'Hermitage, Lausanne |
1999-01-22 - 1999-05-24 |
|
Victorian Watercolours |
- |
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery |
2005-12-20 - 2006-04-23 |
|
Literature
Author(s) |
Date(s) |
Publisher |
Pages |
Pre-Raphaelite Drawings and Watercolours |
|
1953 |
Arts Council of Great Britain |
p. 5 |
|
The Pre-Raphaelites |
Timothy Hilton |
1970 |
Thames and Hudson, London |
p.122 |
|
The Pre-Raphaelite Landscape |
Allen Staley |
1973 |
- |
p.135 |
|
British Watercolours and Drawings: From Rowlandson to Riley |
|
1982 |
British Council |
p.39, 72 |
|
Fifty Watercolours from Birmingham |
|
1987 |
- |
35 |
|
Ruskin and the English Watercolour: From Turner to the Pre-Raphaelites |
|
1989 |
Whitworth Art Gallery, University of Manchester |
p.70, pl.117 |
|
British Watercolours from Birmingham: 150 Outstanding Works from the Permanent Collection of Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery |
|
1991 |
Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery |
pl. 102 |
|
Victorian Landscape Watercolours |
|
1992 |
Yale Centre for British Art |
p.128, pl.64 |
|
Visions of Love and Life: Pre-Raphaelite Art from the Birmingham Collection, England |
Stephen Wildman |
1995 |
Art Services International, Alexandria, Virginia |
p.250, pl.82 |
|
L'Age d'Or de l'Aquarelle Anglaise 1770-1900 |
William Hauptman |
1999 |
Fondation de l'Hermitage, Lausanne |
p.208, 144 |
Associated places
Name |
Type |
Isle of Wight, Great Britain |
Depicted |
Related work & resources
Discuss this work
|