Cecil M. Round Online

Welcome to our eleventh ‘Spotlight Feature’.  With the summer months drawing rapidly to a close and, as the younger generation start preparing to return to school for another academic year, it seems an appropriate time to feature two wonderful paintings from the Harrison family; now nearly one hundred years old.

Celia Halsey kindly contacted us last year with news about two paintings that have been in her family since they were commissioned in 1920.  The subject of the paintings – her maternal grandfather, Charles George Harrison (aged 11 in 1920), and his younger brother, Stanley Ridd Harrison (aged 9).  Both boys are wearing their school uniform, with Charles brandishing a cricket bat and George, the corresponding cricket ball.

It is unclear how the Harrison parents knew Cecil Round as they are believed to have been living in Cardiff in 1920 and we have not yet found any reference to Cecil Round visiting that district.  However, the paintings are a good size, measuring 75 x 56 cm each and are particularly good examples of Cecil Round’s skill when it came to portraiture; noting that whilst undoubtedly commissioned as a pair, only one of the two paintings is actually signed.  Strangely, we have seen instances of this before, with his dual portraits.

Celia takes up the story:  “I have previously understood from my grandfather, that his parents commissioned these paintings from an artist friend and that there was some element of ‘helping him out after the war’ – either by the commissions themselves or the paintings being in lieu of owed money.  However, no-one had been able to remember who the artist was.  Now that I have inherited the second portrait from a great aunt, (reuniting them for the first time in 50 years) I was very pleased to find the signature in the top left-hand corner of ‘Stanley’.”

We often find this with family portraits – they start out as a pair but then, understandably, each member of the family takes their own portrait and the two become separated, often staying within the family but then being handed down through parallel lines of descent.  How wonderful that in this particular case, the two brothers have been reunited across the generations, after fifty years apart – in turn, solving the mystery of who painted the unsigned portrait.

Welcome to our tenth ‘Spotlight Feature’.  This month we have decided to feature a very unusual painting – one that Cecil Round painted but about whose subject we know very little.  The painting first came to our attention in auction records dating back to 2007 when it was offered for sale under the descriptive title, ‘Evening Masquerade, Dancers and Musicians on a Terrace’.

Initially failing to sell, it was then offered for sale through an alternative auction house, where it sold as a real bargain! In fairness though, the low price may in part have been due to the auctioneer’s attribution of the painting to ‘a follower of Cecil Round’, rather than to Cecil Round himself, despite a clear signature in the bottom corner, appearing to be unquestionably that of the artist.

We were pleased to hear from the current owner of the picture a few years ago.  Linda Crosnier works in the art world and kindly contacted us from the USA.  She had purchased the painting a few years earlier.  “I purchased this painting for my daughter because she was interested in dance and, I thought this was a nice image that looked to be of the period and of good quality.  I knew nothing of Cecil M. Round.  I was sceptical of what I would receive.  However, my professional opinion is that the signature is contemporaneous to the painting and that the painting has some age.”

Like us, she was confused by the attribution.  We can only surmise that, as the subject matter is so very different to Cecil Round’s other work, perhaps at the time, the auctioneer was sceptical that it could have been by our artist’s hand; so played down the attribution.

Examining the picture in more detail we find that Cecil Round appears to have captured an evening performance – a ballet dancer performing to the accompaniment of two musicians, playing their instruments (possibly banjos?) whilst dressed in costume.  The scene is lit by make-shift lanterns with a full moon also shining brightly in the background beyond, over the sea.  The garden back-drop is clearly rather grand – steps rise to a terrace where Corinthian columns rise majestically, like an impressive souvenir from a nineteenth century grand tour!  Meanwhile, a low stone wall forms a parapet topped with stone vases and urns;  a stone balustrade descends, presumably where steps (or a more gentle slope) lead down toward the sea; perhaps even to a private beach.

The main dancer is resplendent in her pink tutu which compliments her auburn hair; styled in the period of the day.  The second, seated dancer, wears an outfit suggesting the picture dates perhaps from the early 1920s.  Whatever the occasion, the colours are bright and joyful – the lavish decorations suggest a celebration of some sort and the setting implies the event has a wealthy host.

I’m afraid there is very little else we can add but, perhaps you can help us to shed more light on the scene?  What was the event and where was it hosted – the setting is certainly memorable and distinctive?  In the meantime, we will enjoy the picture for what it is – very different to Cecil Round’s normal palette but wonderful for it, nevertheless!

Welcome to our ninth ‘Spotlight Feature’.  With the summer months upon us, it seems appropriate to feature one of Cecil Round’s seasonal landscapes.  Our focus this month will therefore be on The Golden Cap, near Bridport in Dorset.

This landscape was very familiar to Cecil Round as we know from the 1901 census records that he lived nearby at Lower Eype, in 1901.  By the time he painted this particular painting in the summer of 1923, he had been living in Devon for a number of years.  The census records for 1921 are not yet in the public domain, so we have been unable to verify where he was living in the early 1920s.  However, we know he had extended family (from his mother’s side of the family) in the Bridport area and so it is highly likely he would have retained contacts in the area and may even have been visiting family.

The Golden Cap, which derives its name from the distinctive outcropping of golden greensand rock near its summit, is a hill which is located on the coast of the English Channel, between Bridport and Charmouth, in Dorset.  At 191m above sea level, it is actually the highest point on the South Coast of Great Britain and is visible for miles along the coastline.  Today, the hill is owned by the National Trust and, forms part of the Jurassic Coast; a World Heritage Site.  It is accessible via a coastal footpath from Seatown, and takes around 40 minutes to reach the summit.

Shortly after creating the Cecil Round website, we were pleased to hear from Gabrielle Mellor who had inherited the painting from her father.  Having been brought up in the area, she had particularly fond memories of the Golden Cap and observed how, unlike many artists, Cecil Round had correctly captured the light, within his painting.

Unusually for the medium of oil, a number of Cecil Round paintings were framed behind glass and The Golden Cap was no exception.  This has helped to protect the painting over the intervening period.  As you can see, the eclectic mix of green, blue, purple and sandy orange retains the bright colour and freshness the painting would have had when it was originally completed, nearly a hundred years ago.

Welcome to our eighth ‘Spotlight Feature’.  This month we will be focusing on a truly remarkable painting that Cecil Round created in 1881 – at just sixteen years old!  Unusually for Cecil Round, the painting has a religious theme.  It is a likeness of a very famous painting, that was originally produced by a sixteenth century Master.

If you have been lucky enough to visit The National Gallery in London, you may have come across Ecce Homo, a masterpiece depicting a scene from the life of Jesus Christ, which was painted by Correggio around 1525-1530.  The National Gallery’s website describes it, thus:

Correggio, active 1494; died 1534
Christ presented to the People (Ecce Homo)
probably about 1525-30
Oil on poplar, 99.7 x 80 cm
Bought, 1834
NG15
https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/NG15

“In the New Testament, ‘Ecce Homo’ (Behold the Man) were the words used by Pilate when he presented Christ to the people before the Crucifixion (John 19: 2-5).  The inclusion of the Virgin Mary swooning in the foreground is not mentioned in the Gospels and is not usually represented in this scene.  The turbaned Pilate seems to derive from the print of the same subject in Dürer’s engraved ‘Passion’.”

[Correggio’s Ecce Homo reproduced here with kind permission from The National Gallery, under their Creative Commons agreement.]

We are very grateful to Chris Warrell, Church Warden at St Luke’s Church in Eltham Park, London, for getting in touch with us a few years ago.  He brought to our attention that Cecil Round’s version of the painting is on display in the Lady Chapel at St Luke’s.  Being a 1:1 copy of the original, this is actually one of Cecil Round’s larger pictures, measuring 98 x 80 cm.  Due to poor lighting within the chapel, it was no doubt difficult to take a photograph of the painting.  However, you will see from the image on the right, that it has a striking resemblance to the original, displayed in The National Gallery.

St. Luke’s is situated on the junction of Dumbreck and Westmount Roads (here) in Eltham Park and was designed by the great architect, Temple Moore.  It is built of red brick, with stone dressings and was completed in 1907.

Although not one of his most famous buildings, it carries his characteristic stamp of space and calm.  The building is asymmetrical in design and, originally consisted of a Nave and North Aisle, separated by two pointed arches.  The south wall was originally divided into three bays, each of which contained a window.  The Nave and North Aisle are covered by a steeply pitched tiled roof, which is centred on the Nave and which comes down low on the north side.  The Nave has a timber-barrel, vaulted ceiling.

In 1934, the south wall and windows were removed to leave a three-bay arcade.  A flat roofed South Aisle, Lady Chapel, Porch and Vestry were added, leaving the original Nave and North Aisle unaltered.  This work was designed by the architect J.B.L. Tolhurst.

Chris kindly conducted some research into how the painting came to hang in the Lady Chapel – it was apparently donated to the church by the local Carter sisters in 1910; just three years after the church was built.  Their father had come across Cecil Round’s work many years before and had admired the young artist’s work.  For many years Ecce Homo hung on the pillar on the north side of the nave.  Then it was removed to the middle of the south wall.  At present it hangs on the south wall of the Lady Chapel.  It was only in 2016 that Cecil Round’s signature was rediscovered on the painting, having previously been attributed to “an unknown artist”.

If you happen to be in London, why not visit St Luke’s for yourself, to view Cecil Round’s truly remarkable painting; perhaps en route to The National Gallery?

Welcome to our seventh ‘Spotlight Feature’. This month we will be sharing one of the most intriguing back-stories we have received, in relation to a Cecil Round painting. It is a real tale of mystery and hidden ‘treasure’.

A good few years ago now, we were contacted by Gary Coleman who lives in Canada. He had been doing some home renovations when, upon removing the skin of a wall in his attic, he was shocked to find a Cecil Round painting hidden inside the wall.

The painting is a rural scene depicting the course of a wide river, as it meanders between pasture grazed by cattle (on both sides), during summer time. In the distance, a large farm house rises above the banks of the river, where a weir adds a hint of drama, to the otherwise tranquil setting.

The medium is oil, painted on a board, which measures 25 x 40 cm. The painting was unframed but, alongside Cecil Round’s signature is the date, 1910. Gary explains: “Our house was custom-built in 1922. The painting was found behind shavings insulation in an original wall, so it must have been placed there when being built.”

Looking through our online gallery, you will see that the majority of paintings that have dates attributed to the period around 1910, are of subjects within the county of Devon. As such, although we can’t say for certain, we can assume the mystery painting is also of a Devon scene – certainly the meandering river, grazing cattle, distant farm house and what is fundamentally a pastural scene, is not out of keeping with this county.

But the underlying mystery? Why did this picture of Devon come to be painted by Cecil Round in 1910 within the UK, only to be buried inside the foundation wall of a new house in Canada, twelve years later – where it remained undisturbed, for the next ninety years?

Welcome to our sixth ‘Spotlight Feature’. A few years ago, we were contacted by Alison Wagg who was hoping to sell an unframed Cecil Round canvas she had found tucked behind a wardrobe, while clearing her late-mother’s house. The picture was of a country landscape with a large house set within a mature, parkland setting.

She had no idea how long her mother had owned the painting or how she had originally come by it but, without doubt, it was a wonderful landscape scene.

In the distance, stands a fine country house – clearly one of some grandeur, framed as it is, by mature trees, open parkland and a large lake. It shows a bright Autumnal day with that clarity and crispness that comes with a clear sky and bright sunshine at this time of year. Cattle graze within the parkland, close to the lake. In the foreground, wild flowers dot the meadow in shades of white and purple, contrasting with the deep reflection of autumnal colours in the sun-lit lake beyond.

It was only a short time later that Michael Redfern kindly sent us images of a Cecil Round painting he had owned for over sixty-five years. He happened to mention that another Cecil Round painting had recently sold at auction – it had gone under the hammer as ‘Country House Landscape’. This turned out to be Alison’s painting.

Bidding at the auction had gone quicker than expected and so sadly, he had missed out on the sale. However, he kindly shared with us, that he believed the ‘Country House Landscape’ was in fact, Avington Park in Hampshire.

Avington Park is a privately owned stately home. It is located east of Winchester, in the beautiful Itchen Valley, set in its own parkland bordering the River Itchen. Once described by William Cobbett as “one of the prettiest places in the County”, the house and grounds (including tea room), are open to the public every Sunday and bank holiday Monday, from 5th May to 29th September, 2019 (inclusive). Groups are welcome at other times by appointment throughout the year. In addition to this, the property also serves as a wedding and events venue.

Returning to the painting, we contacted the auction house who kindly collaborated in putting us in touch with the person who had purchased the art work. It transpired that he was in the trade and, although we weren’t initially able to do business, we shared news of the subject matter being Avington Park; hoping that whoever went on to purchase the painting from him, would be all the more appreciative of Cecil Round’s work.

The seller turned out to be a real gentleman and it wasn’t long before we were able to put him in touch with a fellow Cecil Round collector who knew the area well and, who really appreciated the painting! Assumed to date from the mid-1920s when Cecil Round is known to have painted other landscapes within the area, it has since been professionally cleaned and framed which will no doubt preserve it for many, many more years to come. How wonderful that from its hiding place behind an old wardrobe, ‘Country House Landscape’ turned into a proper Country House Rescue!

Welcome to our fifth ‘Spotlight Feature’. We were approached a few years ago by Helen Ashworth and Robert Niven, who kindly shared images of two portraits of their ancestors, attributed to Cecil Round. The portraits date from 1917 and have been in the family since that time. The subject of the portraits are, ‘Commander Oswald Baylis Niven’ and his wife, ‘Rose Gordon Carmichael’.

We were particularly excited to see the paintings as they are such great examples of Cecil Round’s portraiture. Unquestionably a pair, the painting of Oswald Niven is thought to be incomplete and has neither been signed or dated. However, even in it’s unfinished state, it commands attention and depicts the distinguished subject in almost regal stature; the pink rose in his lapel, serving to soften the tone.

In contrast, the portrait of Rose Niven is complete and bears Cecil Round’s signature towards the top-right of the picture, along with the date, referenced as 1917. It is unclear how Cecil Round came to be commissioned to paint the portraits but, the family believe they were living near Torquay in Devon around that time; an area that was well known to Cecil Round and, widely depicted in his work. Both portraits are painted on canvas (60 x 50cm), mounted in identical frames of the period.

Oswald Niven was born in 1845 at Pershore in Worcestershire, while Rose was born in Kensington, London, in 1850. Her father was Major General Charles Montanban Carmichael of the Bengal Cavalry (Companion of Bath HMI Army).

Oswald and Rose Niven were married at St George’s Church, Hanover Square, London in 1874. They went on to have six children – three boys and three girls.

[An extract of the Niven family tree, detailing the year of birth for each of the parents and their six children.]

Two years after getting married, aged 31 years old, the Commander retired from the Royal Navy. The London Gazette (18th July, 1876), subsequently carried the following notice of his retirement:

“Admiralty, 15th July, 1876. In accordance with the provisions of Her Majesty’s Order in Council of the 22nd February 1870 — Lieutenant Oswald Baylis Niven has been placed on the Retired List from the 11th. instant, with permission to assume the rank and title of Retired Commander.”

It appears that the Retired Commander and his wife moved around the country over the next few years – plotted by the birth locations of each of their children: Brompton, London ; Southsea, Hampshire ; Cheltenham, Gloucestershire ; Cheddington, Buckinghamshire and Norwood, Surrey. The couple later moved to Devon, where we have been able to ascertain the Commander died at Torquay, in 1924.

Sadly, like so many families, the Niven’s suffered great personal tragedy during the First World War. Their son Allan was killed in action in July 1916 – he was second-in-command of his battalion and was killed on the first day of the Battle of the Somme. It is particularly poignant that this was only a year before Cecil Round completed portraits of the Niven parents.

Welcome to our fourth ‘Spotlight Feature’. About the time we were completing work on our last feature, ready for publication in early January, I was excited to receive news of ‘A Devon Lane’. The timing was impeccable. Having just written an appeal for collectors to consider dusting off their Cecil Round paintings and getting them restored in the New Year, here was a painting, very much in need of restoration.

‘A Devon Lane’ features a country scene from the 1880s – a boy walking along a farm track, with his arms full of kindling, presumably on an errand to collect wood for the cottage fire. The sun is shining although only in places does the sunlight penetrate the canopy of the rough lane, which is overshadowed by trees and high foliage. As such, it makes for quite a dark scene – dark, but in no way sombre. The rich palette of mixed green brings the foliage alive and gives depth to the scene, drawing the eye to each shrub in turn. In the background we see an open farm gate with the welcoming promise of sunlight beyond. Accompanied by his attentive, characterful dog, it is a scene that captures the innocence of childhood; tinged with a suggestion of the realities of country life in the late nineteenth century.

To set the context around rural and agricultural life in Devon during the 1880s, we have conducted some online research. It appears that the close proximity of available work, ensured that agricultural wages remained high, especially in the areas close to Plymouth and also, the larger towns to the north of the county. Heath, described it thus, in The English Peasantry:

“Many mid-century commentators refer to the operation of similar forces in several districts, and the following example (from 1874) is typical of many: The new Devon and Somerset line from Taunton to Barnstaple, then in process of completion, passed across the north of Devon, and necessarily created a demand for the best and strongest of the agricultural labourers. In the neighbourhood of North Molton, too, iron and copper mines had been opened; so farmers in these districts were compelled to give their men 12 and 13 shillings per week.”

Greg Finch includes this quotation in his excellent analysis of Devon’s Farm Labourer’s in the Victorian Period and goes on to conclude: 

“It is not necessary to find a direct relationship between migration rates and wage increases for it to be clear that the availability of alternative work and a declining supply of labour in the countryside exerted upwards pressure on agricultural wage rates after 1870. What is surprising is that the changing circumstances, particularly the continued rise in money wages during the ‘Great Depression’ should be accepted with such relative equanimity by the county’s farmers, especially in the light of Girdlestone’s experiences at Halberton in the 1860s.

“Remarks to the 1881 Royal Commission expressed some concern that ‘they have copied those higher up and lived too extravagantly’ and that partly as a consequence ‘they take less interest in their work and their employer’s welfare’. Labour was said by some to be ‘scarcely equal to demand’, yet apart from these perennial grumbles there were no serious and sustained complaints from the employers about the rising cost of farm labour.

“Rew’s report on agriculture in north Devon in 1895 is notable for the fact that at the well attended public meetings he organised for the region’s farmers, and at which they were invited to air their grievances, the high price of labour did not figure in discussion. Instead, attention was confined to the level of rents, the Law of Distress, the 1883 Agricultural Holdings Act, the incidence of local taxation and the conditions of sale of foreign meat. It is too much to surmise that Devon’s farmers were of the collective and magnanimous opinion that labourers were at last beginning to receive the just rewards they had always deserved. The explanation must be sought in more strictly economic territory. “

[You can read his full analysis of the period at the following link: HERE.]

Returning to Cecil Round’s painting, the picture has been painted on canvas and the verso is of particular interest. Here, Cecil Round has inscribed the title of the painting alongside his name, accompanied by the date, ‘1881-1882’. Normally, Cecil Round’s work is attributed to a single year and so this is worthy of mention. In fact, as far as I can recall, the only other of his paintings we have come across inscribed with a date range like this, is from the same period: “A Mackerel Day”. The latter, depicting another Devon scene but this time more precisely identifiable as Petit Tor and Oddicombe Bay near Torquay, also dates from 1881-1882.

As such, although there is no real hope of identifying the actual Devon lane that was the subject of his painting, the existence of the second landscape of another Devon scene which was painted during the same period, provides further clarity around the likely neighbourhood of his work.

Sadly, the painting is in very poor condition today but we are grateful to the owner for reaching out to us. You will see from the close-up image, the paint is now flaking and is in a very unstable condition throughout. However, we are told the painting is available to purchase, if anyone feels able or willing to take on this restoration project – and what a restoration it would be! Hopefully we can bring some good news of ‘before’ and ‘after’ photos, in the future! Do please get in touch if the project may be of interest and we will be happy to pass on your contact details, to the current owner.