Studio RT Ltd

Description

We are offering for sale this lovely landscape by the artist John Teasdale, who has signed the painting in the lower left hand corner and dated it 1887. The painting is entitled on the gilt slip within the original gilt frame 'Norham Castle on the Tweed' John Teasdale 1887. This is a really beautiful painting, with a luminous clarity about it and, in our opinion, the best example of his work that we have seen.

The painting depicts a view of the ruins of Norham Castle from the River Tweed. The castle stands on the Northumberland side of the river, which forms the border between England and Scotland and the castle was besieged many times by the Scots, captured, recaptured by the English and repaired until its important strategic postion guarding the border became unnecessary following the union. After which time, it was allowed to fall into disrepair and eventually became the ruin that we see today, which is managed by English Heritage. The castle has been painted by many artists, but particularly by Turner, who painted it on numerous occasions.

John Teasdale was born 1848 in Newcastle upon Tyne, the son of a boot maker. He studied art at Newcastle School of Art under W. B. Scott, and won a National Scholarship to the Royal Academy School at South Kensington. London. He taught art in Belfast, South Shields, Sherborne, and the Doncaster School of Art, after which he returned to the North East as Curator of the Shipley Collection at Gateshead. As well as his teaching, he continued with his own work, exhibiting 3 works in London Exhibitions in 1877/78, afterwards exhibiting locally in the North East.

On a personal note, he was widowed at the age of 32 and married his second wife Jane Elliott in 1887 in Newcastle. He died in Gateshead in 1927.

He painted in both oils and watercolours, mainly architectural subjects and listed himself on census records variously as Certified Art Teacher, Artist Landscape, Figures, Artist and Picture Restorer and just Artist. He is listed in The Dictionary of Victorian Painters by Christopher Wood, The Dictionary of British Watercolour Artists by H. Mallalieu, The Dictionary of British Artists by Grant M. Waters, Painters in the Northern Counties of England and Wales by Dennis Child and The Artists of Northumbria. His exhibitions are listed in Graves Dictionary.

There are 2 of his paintings in the National Collection, 1 at the Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle and the other at the Shipley Art Gallery in Gateshead. These can be viewed on google or at BBC- Your Paintings.

The painting is framed in its original 3 1/2" swept gilded frame and slip, supplied by a Newcastle framer, whose decorative label is still on the frame, and will be supplied wired and ready to hang.

Image size 21 1/2" x 12 1/2" - 54.6cm x 31.75cm

Frame size 28 1/2" x 19 1/2" - 72.35cm x 49.5cm

Medium Oils on canvas

Condition Very good. The canvas is in good clean, taut condition with no repairs. The original frame and slip are visually in very good condition, with a few cracks and repairs consistent with age and use.