Visions of the Great Outdoors
I don't like being cooped up indoors, which is odd given I have done a desk job all my life! Maybe it just makes me appreciate the outdoors more, who knows? I'm also one for nostalgia (which of course ain't what it used to be); couple that with an interest in railways and the art of the railway poster from the Golden Age of the "Big Four" railway companies is somthing I enjoy. I like the clean lines and vibrant colours often used in poster art, and often the exagerrated "Big Skies" of the images used. We did not have use of a family car until the 1970's, so early travel was always by train. I still remember the enticing posters in our suburban train carriages, usually of a sandy beach, blue sea, maybe overlooked by cliffs or a sheltered cove. I wanted to be there! The perfect antidote to a dreary winter's day in the suburbs. Nostalgia for last Summer's holiday, and maybe just looking ahead to the distant Summer months ahead. In railway poster land, it's often Summer, and in the art produced in the days of the Southern, LMS, GWR and LNER, a vision of distant Summer days are preserved for ever.
In similar vein, commercial art flourished in the post- First World War period, and publishers such as Batsford capitalised on the public's appetite for getting about by train or road to explore the countryside. Below I reproduce an example of Brian Cook's Art from this era. And in time I shall be looking for other examples of art from the 1920's and 30's - the use of engravings and woodcuts is something I wish to explore at greater length, too.
Cornish Vale, pastel by Adrian Allison for the Southern Railway, 1945-48. I like the Spring colours breaking out amongst the trees in this fresh-looking image.
The South Downs, by Walter E. Spradbery, 1946. Classic Railway art. The church looks very much like Alfriston, in the Cuckmere Valley.
Ahh, head south for Sunshine and fresh air! "Fresh Air for Health", by H.Alker Tripp, 1937. Huge skies, dominate the ploughman and his team. Already history in many areas by the time it was painted. Roll on the weekend, pack a picnic, cut along to your nearest Southern Railway station and leave The Smoke behind..! Don't ever see skies like that in real life? Check out the photos page in this section..
This is a detail from a watercolour by Jack Merriott, who worked extensively on railway publicity. It is a detail from "Fenny Compton, Warwickshire, 1950" It is quite different from the posters above, and illustrates Merriott's mastery of traditional watercolour techniques - more in classic 19th century style.
"The Road to Fingest and Turville, Bucks". By Brian Cook, 1940. Cover image for H.J. Massingham's "Chiltern Country", published by Batsford in 1940. [Source: Brian Cook: Landscapes of Britain", pub. Batsford, 2012]. Classic landscape image which wants to draw you in, and find out what's down that country lane...
Painted in May 2020, this scene depicts Isle of Wight Class O2 No.27 "Merstone" leaving Sandown with a train for Shanklin. It is based on a published photograph but includes 2 small boys on the platform having their photograph taken by their father. The date is Whitsun, 1966...