Cecil M. Round Online

In the twenty-first century when GDPR rules and regulations have been implemented for our privacy and data protection, it seems strange to find ‘between the sheets’ of the Dartmouth & South Hams Chronicle of 6 July 1900, that hotels shared their guest lists for publication in the local newspaper!

Here, under the dubious heading ‘Local Intelligence’, we learn that Cecil Round was visiting the Raleigh Hotel at Dartmouth, which our research has indicated was a Temperance Hotel (pictured here, circa 1890).

An intriguing announcement was printed ‘between the sheets’ of the Epsom Journal on 8 December 1891. It seems Cecil Round had reason to take four defendants to court, after they conducted themselves in a noisy and disorderly manner with intent to annoy him! Thankfully for all parties, it appears the matter was resolved out of court though; hence the announcement under the heading ‘A Case Withdrawn’.

Not only was Cecil Round in demand for his paintings, but we discover ‘between the sheets’ of both the Surrey Mirror and the West Surrey Times of 7 December 1889, that he was also active as a speaker on the evening lecture circuit – in this instance to members of the Working Men’s Club (‘Ockley Church House’), on Saturday 30 November 1889. His lecture was simply entitled ‘Something about Art’. The Surrey Mirror reviews, as follows:

“On Saturday, Nov. 30th, the second lecture, ‘Something about Art’, was given by Mr Cecil Round, a talented artist resident in Ockley. After clearing away several common errors respecting art, the lecturer traced its history and development from the most primitive times to the present day. He drew striking sketches typical of art in the east, and as brought to perfection in the noble statuary and buildings of ancient Greece. In treating of the fortunes of art in England, he pointed out that the race for wealth had sadly deadened the sense of beauty and fitness, as found formerly in the working-classes. Severe comment was also passed upon the heartless iconoclism of the reformation and great rebellion, which had well nigh destroyed the beauty as well as the life of the Church. He made a stirring appeal to the working men present to make use of their power, by showing a self-sacrificing example of what was noble and beautiful.”

Noting the venue was the ‘Ockley Church House’, presumably the religious content was in tune with his audience, as the West Surrey Times simply states: “Mr Cecil Round gave a lecture on ‘Art’ to an appreciative gathering.”

St Margaret’s Church at Ockley, Surrey (by an unknown artist) – www.capelandockleychurch.org.uk

In 1891, Cecil Round was operating from a studio in the village of Ockley in Surrey, and ‘between the sheets’ of the Dorking and Leatherhead Advertiser of 8 August 1891, we find news that he was visited at his studio by a certain Mr Edmund Yates (1831-1894). Yates, a novelist, playwright and journalist, was the distinguished co-founder and editor of The World, a weekly journal published in London from 1874 to 1920. It became one of the leading society papers, and included a mix of investigative reports, gossip and an ‘intimate style’ of journalism.

One may well wonder why Mr Yates should choose to visit Cecil Round at his studio – the obvious reason being to purchase or commission a painting – but perhaps also as a social visit, for they knew each other well. Cecil Round had previously painted Edmund Yates’ portrait. One of the most detailed reviews was reported in the Leicester Daily Post on 2 May 1889, when the painting was exhibited at the New Gallery (121 Regents Street, London).

A couple of days later on 4 May 1889, the Croydon Guardian and Surrey County Gazette ran the following editorial which is rather complementary in it’s conclusion that the portrait is ‘a capital likeness’.

Finally, we go ‘between the sheets’ of Black & White published on 21 January 1893 in which J.F. Boves meets Edmund Yates, and gives readers a guided tour of Yates’ home – disclosing along the way, that Cecil Round’s portrait hangs in the main hallway.

Reporting on the latest exhibition at the New Gallery (Regent’s Street, London), we discover ‘between the sheets’ of the Leeds Mercury of 12 May 1890, that Cecil Round was exhibiting ‘Awakening Spring’ (127): “…a mass of wild hyacinths bursting into a blaze of blue.”

The editor of The Illustrated London News of 17 May 1890, comments further: “Mr Cecil Round might have found a more appropriate motto for his spring landscape (127), with its mass of wild hyacinths, in Tennyson’s line – ‘The heavens upbreaking through the earth’; but the picture is a good one, and shows a fine sense of colour.”

Looking through our Online Gallery, we could speculate that perhaps the description refers to the painting listed as ‘Spring’; a painting that Cecil Round produced in 1889, and which is awash with the purple-blue hue of spring-time hyacinths, in a woodland setting.

Tucked away ‘between the sheets’ of the Bridport News on 30 April 1886, we find fewer than thirty words announcing:

“We hear that Mr Cecil Round has been successful in getting hung three out of four pictures sent up to the Royal Academy for the forthcoming exhibition.”

Although it was not reported within the newspaper editorial, our own research has confirmed the three paintings were entitled:

‘The Path of the Whirlwind’
‘Through the Wood’
‘Golden Days at Glareloch’

Please refer back to our ‘On The Market…’ feature dated 20/02/2020, in which we speculate about a possible but so far unverified image of ‘The Path of the Whirlwind’; seen here and also in our Online Gallery, as ‘Trees in Landscape’ from 1885.

Searching ‘between the sheets’ of old newspapers we came across this advertisement which Cecil Round had placed in the Totnes Weekly Times. This particular example was published on 26 March 1898 when he appears to have been operating from a studio in the village of South Brent, whilst living nearby at Ivybridge, Devon. It demonstrates a wider field to his activities – that of teaching, all forms of drawing and painting.

We assume he was renting rooms at the house, as it would have been quite a new property at the time, and he is unlikely to have been living there on his own.

Today, the property at Erme Terrace (on Station Road, PL21 0AL) is a 5-bedroom terraced house. It last sold in September 2016 for £250,000 and retains many period features.

Set over ground, first and second floors, despite it’s residential location the property looks directly onto the River Erme, with the open space and greenery of Victoria Park just a short distance away, along Station Road. Photos and floorplans are available to view through the RightMove archive here.

Welcome to our new series, which over the coming year aims to explore ‘between the sheets’ of old newspapers, for any mention of Cecil Round. We hope to share snippets of information that help to build a picture of what Cecil Round got up to, and how his work was received by his contemporaries.

Here, for example, is a quote from the Western Morning News of 27 July 1898. It describes Cecil Round’s contribution to the 27th annual Devon and Cornwall exhibition of oil paintings and water-colour drawings, which had opened earlier that day. The venue was Harris and Sons’ Galleries in George Street, Plymouth: