ceegee Posted February 22, 2017 Share Posted February 22, 2017 Can anyone identify the location of the attached painting by the Sheffield artist Robert Hudson (1852 - 1884), It appears that he was a talented artist and his work has been acquired by a number of museums. One of his paintings is in the collection of City Museums and is of the brook in Endcliffe Park Sheffield. Is this painting in the same area? Any ideas would be welcome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unrecordings Posted February 23, 2017 Share Posted February 23, 2017 I'm assuming you don't have access to see if anything is written on the back of the frame If not then the place where you photographed it might have more information in their catalogue (I've tried an image search but today Google is insistent that I'm actually looking for paintings of the River Hudson) Can you tell what the writing at the bottom of the frame says (I suspect it's R. Hudson and a date but that's a guess) Other than that it's a number of cottages by a small river [edit to add] i think a bloodyminded search along the rivers on the NLC maps are in order... [edit again] I want to suggest Norton Hammer, but I don't think it fits (the tree line in the distance is too low) [final edit] I reckon it's a millpond not a river, therefore the view possibly looks vaguely North (assuming Sheaf or Porter, I have another theory about the number of mature trees given this was painted only twenty or so years after the great flood) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lysander Posted February 24, 2017 Share Posted February 24, 2017 I also did a google but came up with nothing. When I first saw the picture I was reminded of the old cottages which stood at the bottom of Herries Road ( minus the railway viaduct) which stood by the side of a pond! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hilldweller Posted February 24, 2017 Share Posted February 24, 2017 Having strong family connections with Wardsend and having lived there as a small child I don't think it shows the cottages. Also the smaller pond was located some distance above the level of the cottages and the mill building. The tail goit from the mill was culverted underground down by the side of the cottages and came out in the portal to the main tunnel from the big pond. I enclose a sketch I did of the Wardsend Estate as I remember it. hilldweller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tozzin Posted February 24, 2017 Share Posted February 24, 2017 On 22/02/2017 at 14:25, ceegee said: Can anyone identify the location of the attached painting by the Sheffield artist Robert Hudson (1852 - 1884), It appears that he was a talented artist and his work has been acquired by a number of museums. One of his paintings is in the collection of City Museums and is of the brook in Endcliffe Park Sheffield. Is this painting in the same area? Any ideas would be welcome This resembles this area Bennett Wheel or Sheffield Moor Wheel, Vulcan Dam, River Porter. St. Mary's Church in background check the drawing on Picture Sheffield. The drawing is of a different perspective but looks very similar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unrecordings Posted February 24, 2017 Share Posted February 24, 2017 If it is Sheffield (and it may well be Nottinghamshire) then I think it must be further up in the hills See the chimney in the foreground on the right - at the top of that does anyone see that line as the crest of a bank/ridge/spur ? It must be pretty steep because there's a gable end just in front of it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lysander Posted February 25, 2017 Share Posted February 25, 2017 The cottages I was thinking of were those described on the plan ( thanks very much for that.hilldweller|) as Wardsend Cottages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neddy Posted February 25, 2017 Share Posted February 25, 2017 I thought of Wardsend, style of fencing, but of the cottages/old rolling mill off Livesey Street, Can be seen middle of picture here, http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/image/epw048669?search=owlerton&ref=7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ceegee Posted February 26, 2017 Author Share Posted February 26, 2017 Thank you for your replies. The signature on the painting states says Hudson Junior, 1861. but the date is indistinct and it may be 1881. (He would have been 9 years old in 1861) There is a label on the back from a nineteenth-century restorer in Cheltenham (now gone, it seems), together with a number (519) and some open-to-interpretation writing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unrecordings Posted February 26, 2017 Share Posted February 26, 2017 can we see the writing that's open to interpretation ? can you also tell what this says on the frame ? (think it's R Hudson 18xx though, but might confirm the date at least) Edit: I'm wondering if 519 is an exhibition ticket - maybe even one of the RA exhibitions (sadly the RA Summer exhibition catalogues aren't online yet) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joma888 Posted April 28, 2017 Share Posted April 28, 2017 Hi Just managed to register with the forum. I am the owner of the painting, and I am very grateful to ceegee for starting this thread and to everyone who has replied with ideas and suggestions. It seems that there were two Robert Hudsons, father and son, who were both painters. Robert Sr was known as a painter of "fresh out-door subjects, such as birds nests and apple blossoms". This, I believe, is an example of Robert Sr's work: Robert Jr lived from 1852 to 1884, dying at the age of just 32. Thanks to the Royal Academy in London and Graves Gallery in Sheffield, I have some additional information. Royal Academy Robert Hudson Jr showed a painting at the Royal Academy in 1877, titled “Companions in Age” His address at the time was given as 441 Glossop Rd, Sheffield. According to the Dictionary of British Artists 1880-1940, Hudson Jr also showed at least 2 paintings at the Royal Scottish Academy. To be included in the Dictionary of British Artists 1880-1940 one of the major auction galleries had to have sold a painting by Robert Hudson Jr for at least £100 between 1970 and 1975. Graves Gallery in Sheffield Robert Hudson Junior Born 1852, Sheffield, Yorkshire, son of Robert Hudson Senior, Artist, Furniture broker 1861 Census: aged 9, Scholar, living at 100 Devonshire Street, Sheffield, Yorks, with parents, 4 siblings, 1 servant (RG9/3478. folio 72) 1871 Census: aged 19, artist in oil colours, living at 64 William Street, Sheffield, Yorks, with parents, 4 siblings (RG10/4670, folio 67. p21) Studied Sheffield School of Art Travelled in Switzerland, Scotland and North Wales 1877: Marriage reg. J1877 to Mary Holiday, Ecclesall Bierlow, Sheffield, Yorks. 1877: Exhibited Royal Academy, London Exhibited with Royal Society of British Artists, London Founder (?) Member of and exhibitor with Sheffield Society of Artists Patronage of John Newton Mappin, Rotherham brewer. 1881 Census: aged 29, artist, landscape painter, living at 8 Havelock Street, Sheffield, Yorks, with wife (RG11/4633. folio 45. p32) Died 6 April 1884, aged 32, Ecclesall Bierlow, Sheffield, Yorks. Obituary, Sheffield Daily Telegraph, 7 April 1884 Image below from http://ceegee-viewfromahill.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/robert-hudson-sheffield-artist-1852-1884.html Museums Sheffield holds a paining by Robert Jr that was painted in Endcliffe Woods. http://collections.museums-sheffield.org.uk/view/objects/asitem/People@2185/0?t:state:flow=6ea58f67-4560-487c-bd1d-10b1b1808fa0 I contacted the parks department for the Endcliffe area and was given this suggestion: "Porter Valley had a number of working buildings around all the Dams including Dams that are no longer around." Here are some additional photos (deliberately over exposed and lightened) of the front, back, and details of the painting. Additional images of paintings by Robert Jr at https://artuk.org/discover/artists/hudson-robert-18521884. Given that Robert Hudson Jr is known to have painted scenes in Switzerland, Scotland, and North Wales as well as in the Sheffield area, it may be that the painting I have was not painted in Sheffield at all. At the moment, I am following up the Royal Scottish Academy, Royal Society of British Artists, and Sheffield Society of Artists. I have never visited Sheffield, but looking at some of the suggested locations on Google Maps, it is clear that the area has changed a great deal in the intervening years and that the chances of the location in the painting being identified (if in or around Sheffield at all) are small. Come what may, it seems that Robert Hudson Jr was a highly accomplished artist who died way too young and was forgotten far too easily for a man of such evident talent. With thanks for any ideas or suggestions. Best Joma Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unrecordings Posted April 30, 2017 Share Posted April 30, 2017 Looking at the '519' markings - they look to me like they could be '519 Clean K......' (or 519 Clean Hudson) and what looks like '519 Varnish' - if so they're likely to be associated with Arthur Whitcombe's possible restoration Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unrecordings Posted April 30, 2017 Share Posted April 30, 2017 I reckon this picture (the other Hudson Jnr) is the Stepping Stones in what is now Endcliffe Park (the view is roughly West / North West) anyone else feel the same ? (and if so, is that church on the horizon in Fulwood ?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unrecordings Posted April 30, 2017 Share Posted April 30, 2017 Here's the Stepping Stones at the turn of the 20th Century Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joma888 Posted May 2, 2017 Share Posted May 2, 2017 On 30/04/2017 at 16:59, unrecordings said: Looking at the '519' markings - they look to me like they could be '519 Clean K......' (or 519 Clean Hudson) and what looks like '519 Varnish' - if so they're likely to be associated with Arthur Whitcombe's possible restoration Thanks for the reply and the images of the Stepping Stones. Yes, I think the 519 markings might well be to do with framing and/or restoration. I have tried to track down Arthur Whitcombe in Cheltenham, but without any success. The frame is certainly elaborate in its own right. The type of framing someone might invest in for a public exhibition? I really like how the painting depicts a period of social history: a domestic house (I assume) with an industrial chimney by the front door. It has a tale to tell, and I hope that the more I delve, the more I will be able to uncover about the work and the artist. The Stepping Stones still exist, it seems. They have changed and changed again over time. https://mysimpleblogaboutsimplelife.wordpress.com/author/momentsofconsciousness/page/3/ If Robert Hudson Jr painted other local scenes, it is conceivable that my painting might well have been painted in the same vicinity. With thanks for your help and for sharing. Best Joma Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joma888 Posted December 11, 2017 Share Posted December 11, 2017 Heard back from the Royal Scottish Academy. Robert Hudson (Junior) exhibited with the RSA on three occasions:1) 1878 Showery day on the moors, Derbyshire 2) 1882 The valley of Edwenstone [I *believe* this is probably Edwinstone in Nottinghamshire] 3) 1883 Fluelen Lake, Lucerne - eveningAt the time of these three exhibitions, RHJ was living in Sheffield. I have been approached by an art collector in Japan who is interested in acquiring the painting, although I have no wish to sell it. But good to see that the work of Robert Hudson (Junior) has international appeal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizziejampot Posted December 11, 2017 Share Posted December 11, 2017 On 28/04/2017 at 21:07, Joma888 said: Founder (?) Member of and exhibitor with Sheffield Society of Artists Robert Hudson Jr was indeed a Founder Member of the SSA as reported by the Sheffield Independent, Tuesday 24 November 1874 The SSA Catalogue of the 1877 Annual Exhibition lists six of his works (and a couple by his father) but none of them suggest cottages. Four of the six paintings were landscapes from North Wales. Companions in Age is also listed and was on loan from John F. Moss Esq. The 1878 Catalogue indicates that Robert Hudson was elected to the committee of the SSA. I haven't got access to the catalogue itself right now, but it is available in Local Studies, so will have a look at it next time I'm in town. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizziejampot Posted December 11, 2017 Share Posted December 11, 2017 On 28/04/2017 at 21:07, Joma888 said: Robert Hudson Jr showed a painting at the Royal Academy in 1877, titled “Companions in Age” His address at the time was given as 441 Glossop Rd, Sheffield. It looks like he was living with his parents in 1877. White's 1879 Directory shows that he was living at 36 Victoria Road, while his father was still at 441 Glossop Road. They both had a studio in Change Alley. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizziejampot Posted December 12, 2017 Share Posted December 12, 2017 Just been checking the newspapers and there is a report in the Sheffield Independent, Thursday 11th December, 1884 that may be of interest. It describes the sale of 52 of Hudson's paintings to raise money for his widow and children. The article also gives the names of the principal buyers of the paintings. The list of titles sold includes 2 paintings of cottages. The first is "A cottage at Beamsley, near Bolton Abbey" and the second is "A cottage at Wharncliffe". I'm not familiar with the area around Beamsley, so cannot comment on that. However, Wharncliffe could be a possibility - any thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizziejampot Posted December 12, 2017 Share Posted December 12, 2017 14 hours ago, Lizziejampot said: A cottage at Wharncliffe". I'm not familiar with the area around Beamsley, so cannot comment on that. However, Wharncliffe could be a possibility - any thoughts? Sheffield Daily Telegraph, Thursday 11 Dec 1884 states that "A Cottage at Wharncliffe" was purchased by Mr John Smith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris444 Posted May 7, 2019 Share Posted May 7, 2019 I am confused about the dates of the artist Robert Hudson. In the 1851 Census for 14 Bridgegate, Rotherham. There is an listing for Robert Hudson, Painter and Sculpture. This Robert Hudson would have been born in 1802. Is this another Robert Hudson, Artist? That would make three artists in the area named Robert Hudson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unrecordings Posted May 8, 2019 Share Posted May 8, 2019 Something that's been nagging me actually - I wonder if the OP's picture is of Endcliffe Wheel, given that other paintings we've seen were painted mere yards upstream http://www.riversheaf.org/sheafrwp/?page_id=599 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris444 Posted May 10, 2019 Share Posted May 10, 2019 The 1851 Census (2343 256F) shows Robert Hudson Snr. living at 14 Bridge Gate, Rotherham. Ann Crowcroft (age 7) lived next door with her Aunty and Uncle (Tobacconists). Ann married Thomas Willis in 1866 and on the wedding certificate, Ann's farther is named as Robert Hudson, Artist. Ann Crowcroft's farther is also named as Robert Hudson Painter in the family bible. Just a bit of an historical scandal in my family history. Also shown is Robert Hudson Jnr. aged 14, this means he was born in 1837 and not 1852, unless, Robert Hudson (aged 14) is Robert Hudson Snr and he farther a child at 15. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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