Studio RT Ltd

Description

We are very pleased to offer this beautiful and quite rare still life Oil Painting of Roses in a Vase by the renowned artist and ceramic painter Charles Ferdinand Hurten, who has signed the painting S. F. Hurten to the lower right hand corner. The painting depicts an attractively decorated duck egg blue jug full of roses in tones of pink and pale yellow, with a woodland background. (We know this was a jug, because the artist has painted in before). This artist is known as probably the best flower painter of the mid to late Victorian era, who worked for Copeland Spode until 1897.

Charles or Carl Ferdinand Hurten was born in Cologne in 1822 and studied there and in Paris. He worked for Sevres in Paris, where one of his exhibition pieces was spotted by William Copeland and he was invited to come to England on a five year contract at £320 a year, plus moving expenses to come over and to return to France should he wish, at the end of the contract. He arrived circa late 1858 in Stoke on Trent, with his French wife Amelia, his son Charles F. Jr and his two daughters, who were all born in France.

By 1871, as he obviously decided to stay at an increased salary of £350 a year from 1870, they were living at 9 Minton Terrace, Shelton, Stoke on Trent and he was listed as a 'Flower painter on china'. By 1881, they were living at Minton Place and, on the night of the Census Charles and his Wife were hosting his 4 grandchildren, as well as their two servants. These children were the children of his daughter Emma A. Hurton, born 1853, who married another ceramic painter of Copelands called Lucien Louis Besche, who painted a portrait on a plaque of Charles, which can be viewed online on a blog spot of a former curator of the Copeland Museum. Interestingly his granddaughter was Charlotte Rhead, the ceramic designer, who was the daughter of Charles' youngest daughter Adolphine.

We can find no trace of Charles or his wife in the 1891 Census, so perhaps they were abroad, but he continued working for Copelands until he retired in 1897 and was very highly thought of. He died in the Hendon area of London in 1901, before the Census was recorded.

His ceramic painting was exhibited at International Exhbiitions in London in 1862 and in Paris in 1867 and 1889. He also exhibited a Flower Painting at a London exhbition in 1965, although we do not know where. He is listed in The Dictionary of Victorian Painters by Christopher Wood (Collectors Club). There is much to be found online about this artist, including far more information about his time with Copelands. Although the majority of his superb work was on ceramics, he also painted flower paintings in oils, as this example and he has 19 auction listings on artprice.com. A pair of his flower paintings achieved £4,800 at Christies in 1992, although his larger ceramic works can fetch far more than this.

The painting has been newly framed in a 3 1/2" reeded gilt frame, which tones with the painting very well. It will be supplied wired and ready to hang.

Image size: 17 1/2" x 11 5/8" - 44.5cm x 29.75cm

Frame size: 25 1/8" x 19 1/4" - 63.8cm x 48.9cm

Medium: Oils on canvas

Condition: Very, very good. The surface is clean and taut and there is no craquelure, overpainting, repairs or missing paint. The frame is new.