Oil on canvas by Henry Harris – Landscape with two figures camping near a camp fire, circa1890

Original artwork by Henry Harris – Landscape with caravan and two figures camping near a camp fire, circa 1890

Oil on canvas signed on lower left.

Beautifully framed – Note on frame: The current frame is a magnificent, classically styled molding, typical of high-quality 20th-century presentation frames, with its integrated gilt mat.

Dimensions: With frame 43.5 x 64 cm – 17.2 x 25.2 in. – Canvas: 31 x 52 cm – 12.2 x 20.5 in.

Provenance: Private collection Georgeville, Qc, Canada

Price: 1 500,00 $ CAD (Canadian dollars)

Note: Subject: Scenes of encampments and caravans at the edge of the forest were among his favorite themes. The mastery of light contrasts, the cloudy sky, the campfire lit near the caravan, and the meticulous rendering of the vegetation confirm his pastoral romantic style.

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Henry HARRIS (1852–1926)

Henry Harris was born in Cullompton, Devon in 1852 and died in Bristol in 1926. He is the most frequently referenced painter by this name, known as a prolific British Victorian and Edwardian landscape artist.

He was one of 15 boys born to a miller. His brother George Harris also became a recognized landscape painter, and the two occasionally collaborated. In 1862 the family moved to Bristol. He started his career as a sailor, for there is a family story that at the age of about 17 he piloted a steamboat around the coast of Wales. Before he became a professional easel artist, Henry Harris worked as a self-employed painter and interior decorator. He painted murals in houses on the Bristol Downs that were being built and then in 1875, he took up painting as a full-time occupation.

Working primarily in oil and occasionally watercolor, he specialized in pastoral West Country views around Bristol and Somerset, alongside scenic Welsh landmarks like Chepstow Castle and Tintern Abbey. Common motifs include river valleys, harvest scenes, timber and hay wagons, cattle watering, figures fishing and gypsy camps with caravans.

He had his own distinctive style, particularly in the painting of trees, which helps to make the work easy to recognise.

He rarely exhibited work as he sold the majority of it directly to business people, often for wedding presents.

Henry Harris continued to paint well into the 20th century and after a short illness he died in Bristol in 1926.

Sources: Wikipedia