Dorothea Sharp - “Sunshine and Shadow”

Delightful Catalonian scene with excellent contrasts

Stock Code: 2588

Description: In this colourful and painterly depiction of a charming scene, a girl wearing a white dress and yellow cardigan leads a child by the hand across a rocky hilltop, bathed in brilliant sunshine. Around the two figures, goats graze amidst clumps of heather growing in crevices in the rock. Behind the two figures, in the distance, hills extend out to a blue horizon line. Although the scene could well be in Cornwall, it has all the attributes of a Mediterranean landscape (most probably Catalonia), and indeed Sharp travelled extensively in Portugal, Spain and Italy, exhibiting the resulting work at the Royal Academy in London.

Further Information: Born in Dartford, Kentin 1874, Sharp initially studied at the Richmond art school, under the landscape painter C. E. Johnson, before moving on to the Regent Street Polytechnic, where she was influenced by the naturalistic Impressionist style of George Clausen and David Murray. This interest in Impressionism led Sharp to Paris, where she studied the works of Claude Monet in detail, working ‘en plein air’ and adapting his technique of pure colours to her own engaging style. Sharp first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1901, was elected an Associate of the Society of Women Artists two years later, and became a full member of the SWA in 1908. In 1920 she moved to St. Ives in Cornwall, where there was a thriving community of artists, many of them specialising in landscape and figurative work. Settling there with her close friend Marcella Smith, Sharp continued to paint and exhibit at the RA for many years, becoming also a member of other societies, including the Royal Institute of Oil Painters (ROI). Sharp’s first solo show was held at the Connell Gallery in 1933. She specialised in depicting children at the seaside, picking wild flowers, or feeding chickens, and while charming, her work avoids the sentimentality of much Victorian art. Depicting an idyllic world of eternal sunshine, Sharp seems to have remained unaffected by dismal events in the world, such as wars and economic depression.

Condition: Excellent. The painting has been lightly cleaned and re-framed in a modern British style frame.

Country of Origin: England

Artist & Painting: Dorothea Sharp RBA, ROI, VPSWA, British (1874-1955) – “Sunshine and Shadow” – oil on board.

Provenance: Private collection Ireland, previously with Victor Waddinton Galleries, Dublin.

Signed: Lower left, titled verso with artists own label, gallery label.

Dimensions of Canvas: Height 16.00 inches (40.64cm) Width 18.00 inches (45.72cm)

Price: £23,900

Price: ¥

Price: €

Price: $