Walter Greaves (British 1846-1930), Nocturne

Walter Greaves (British 1846-1930)Nocturne, Battersea ReachOil on canvas61 x 46cm (24 x 18 in.)Provenance:Sale, Sotheby's, London, 23 June 1999, lot 6Property from a Private English CollectorWalter Greaves (1846 - 1930) was a British painter and etcher who was born and worked in London. Together with his brother, Henry (1844 - 1906) Greaves met the artist James McNeil Whistler in 1863. Over the next twenty years the brothers would become great friends and studio assistants to Whistler, who in turn taught them to paint and introduced them to the sights of the Thames which would later inspire the artist's 'nocturne' views of the river at night.The influence of Whistler's 'nocturne' series can very clearly be seen in the work of both Henry and Walter Greaves. In Nocturne, Battersea Reach, as well as the obvious reference in the title, the hazy colour palate of dusky blues and greys together with the dab of yellow coming from the streetlamp in the foreground and linear composition are all reminiscent of works such as Nocturne: Blue and Gold - Old Battersea Bridge, c.1872-5 (Tate No. 1959) and Nocturne: Blue and Silver - Chelsea, 1871 (Tate No. T01571).By the late 1870s however, Whistler began to cultivate a more sophisticated set of friends which included Walter Sickert and Mortimer Mempes and the Greaves brothers, who, despite their unsophisticated attempts had always aspired to imitate their friend, found themselves excluded from this distinguished circle.Walter went on to suffer many years of poverty before being discovered by William Marchant, proprietor of the Goupil Galleries. In 1911, Marchant held an exhibition of Greaves work in his London gallery. The success of the exhibition was short lived however as just weeks after the exhibition opened, Whistler's self-appointed biographer Joseph Pennell and his wife sought to damage Greaves' reputation by claiming that he had plagiarised Whistler's work. This seems to be an unsubstantiated claim against Greaves. As well as the Greaves brothers, Whistler was also a friend to the whole Greaves family for many years and was a frequent visitor to their house and whilst Whistler eventually dropped the whole family, it was during this time that Henry and Walter were able to develop their own artistic identity and love of Chelsea whilst being firmly guided by Whistler himself. In addition, other works produced by the brothers, including Duke Street, Old Chelsea (Lot XX), The Kings Head and Eight Bells (Lot XX), and A Chelsea Pensioner outside the Kings Head (Lot XX), all depict the Chelsea that the Greaves brothers knew and loved through their own eyes and in their own individual style.In his 1928 book Painters of the 1890s, John Rothenstein writes:"Yet in truth Greaves was not only one of the most important artists of the period, but one whose painting and personality contrasted more sharply with Whistler's than did those of any of his contemporaries......the similarities were accidental while the differences were essential. ..." (p.122)This slur on Greaves' work was not completely successful and in 1922, Greaves' work was exhibited again, this time at the Grosvenor Gallery and arranged by Augustus John, William Nicholson, and William Rothenstein. It was also at this time that he was elected an honorary member of the Chelsea Arts Club. Examples of the artist's work are held by Tate Gallery, London.Condition Report: Relined. Some scattered white splashes to the lower right quadrant. Further surface blemishes and abrasions throughout. Inspection under UV reveals scattered retouching throughout. Condition Report Disclaimer