Last week I visited Southampton City Art Gallery for the first time and was taken by a room that contained many paintings by the artist Albert Durer Lucas.
LUCAS PAINTED mainly small, detailed studies of flowers and foliage, sometimes with butterflies and other insects. He lived much of his life at 50, Padwell Rd although the original house is no longer there. He must have taken much of his inspiration from Southampton Common which was on his ‘doorstep’. The background of some of his delicate flower paintings are treescapes and are typical of scenes on the Common. He was a member of Southampton Art Society and exhibited in London between 1859 and 1878. Although he didn’t achieve a great deal of recognition during his lifetime, he is now increasingly collectable and his work is going up in value.
Bevois Mount History
The first of Albert’s paintings that caught my eye was Oak, Holly and Other Trees, up close this painting appears to shimmer, the light it captures is so magical and the subject so alive, both mysterious and animist.
The other painting by Albert that captivated me and transported me was his painting of Stonehenge dating from 1904.
The scale of this painting suits the subject perfectly. It is a brilliant study of our most iconic Stone Circle in Great Britain.
Many of the other paintings I saw are botanical or close up studies of flowers or arranges flowers. Below are a few examples.
Forget-Me-Nots
Heather
Wild Flowers
Cultivated Flowers
Very different from each of these but also displying the same skill of capturing atmosphere is the painting Interior of Norman Merchant House, Blue Anchor Lane, Southampton, 12th Century.