The Irish-born artist, who exhibited at the Royal Academy on multiple occasions from 1886-97, gravitated towards depictions of the sea after spending time in Yorkshire.
His pure elemental seascapes were developed later in life using the sea off the south-west coast of England, specifically in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, as inspiration.
Sought-after commercially, the largest and best-preserved examples have made upwards of £30,000 at auction.
Vendor delighted
This 2ft x 4ft 2in (62cm x 1.27m) oil on canvas, dated to 1894, was consigned from a private estate in East Yorkshire to a local saleroom, Hawley’s (22% buyer’s premium) in Beverley, on May 18.
With a rewarding restoration project in prospect – there was craquelure throughout and damage to the frame – together with an attractive £1500-2500 estimate, it drew multiple bids before the hammer fell at £6000 to a European buyer.
The auction house, which had included no fewer than 28 images of the work in its online catalogue to highlight its condition issues, told ATG the vendor had wanted a £1500 reserve and was “over the moon” with the result.
