WINSLOW HOMER
BOOKS
PRINTS
BAHAMAS
THE FOX HUNT
CENTURY MAGAZINE
HELENA DE KAY
IN ENGLAND
SAILING THE CATBOAT

 

In March 1881, Winslow Homer, already well established as one of the foremost American artists of his time, travelled to England in search of new subjects for his brush. He found his way to the small, remote, wind-swept fishing village of Cullercoats in Northumberland on the North East coast where he lived for a year and a half, making numerous sketches, drawings, watercolours and oil paintings. He was ten miles from the large city of Newcastle upon Tyne, and about two miles from the fashionable Victorian resort of Tynemouth.

Although much has been written about Homer for more than a century, only in recent years have serious, detailed studies begun to examine Homer's English sojourn. Most active in this field was the late John Boon, a local historian and resident of Tynemouth. Without John Boon's help, advice, and encouragement, I would not have progressed far with this volume. His diligent research and enthusiasm prompted me to organise and stage, with the help of the members of the Cullercoats Local History Society, an exhibition in June 1981 in celebration of the Centenary of Homer's arrival in Cullercoats. The exhibition consisted of photographs of many of Homer's English works kindly provided by several American museums and galleries, together with a selection of colour reproductions of some of his best-known paintings. Also on view were many original paintings by some of Homer's Cullercoats contemporaries including Robert Jobling, Henry Hetherington Emmerson, George Horton, John Charlton and Bernard Benedict Hemy. These works of art were augmented by many photographs of Cullercoats and its fisherfolk, some being on public display for the first time.

 

Winslow Homer 'Fisher Girls On The Beach' Tynemouth

The exhibition attracted extensive coverage by the media and was such a thoroughgoing success that the preparation of a book specifically devoted to Homer's English sojourn seemed to be in order. New avenues of research suggested by the exhibition were followed up and many proved to be fruitful. Perhaps the most important discovery was the Adamson Manuscript. During her visit to the 1981 exhibition, Linda Greenley, a local resident, told me that a friend, Dorothy Mitchell, had told her that her uncle, Alan Adamson had become friendly with Homer during his stay in Cullercoats and had returned to the United States with him in 1882. Dorothy Mitchell had died some years earlier, but Linda Greenley had the address of a cousin. I suggested that she wrote to this cousin, John Bulcock, and he confirmed that his uncle, Alan Adamson, had emigrated to the United States in 1882. He also furnished us with the name and address of Alan Adamson's daughter Constance Overesch, who lived in Michigan. Linda Greenley entered into a correspondence with Constance who was interested to hear of my book project and provided us with some useful information. Then, following the death of her elder brother, Constance discovered some Homer memorabilia, including the essay, amongst his possessions, and forwarded the items to us for publication in this book. The essay by Alan Adamson is published in full, along with some of the other items that were sent to us by Constance Overesch.

"Looking toward the Groyne Light,
South Shields on the River Tyne"

The Catalog section of the book lists the 170 works by Homer that I have been able to identify so far as originating from his English sojourn. The majority of the catalog entries are illustrated with an image of the work.

The aim of the book is to present a historically accurate account of Homer's stay in Cullercoats. I do not pretend to treat his art critically, though in presenting the most complete list of Homer's English works ever published in one volume, I have taken the opportunity to correct erroneous information that has reached print over the past century.

The preparation of this study has been a labour of love. I hope that my readers will gain at least as much enjoyment from reading it as I have had in writing it.

— Tony Harrison
All contents © copyright 2003 Hornby Editions. All rights reserved.

Tony Harrison lived in the village of Cullercoats on the North East Coast of England for 18 years, where he founded the Cullercoats Local History Society and was founder and the first Editor of the Cullercoats Community Association magazine "The Beacon" from its inception in 1979 until shortly before his business commitments necessitated him moving to Edinburgh in 1986.

In 1983 he became Arts & Literary Editor of "North East Times" a glossy magazine published in Newcastle upon Tyne, and continued to contribute articles each month on art exhibitions, museum and art gallery acquisitions, local history, and other art related subjects relevant to the North East of England until the spring of 2003 when he relinquished this role after 20 years to concentrate on other projects such as his upcoming book, and his website devoted to Winslow Homer.

In the late 1970's Tony Harrison became interested in Winslow Homer and undertook much research on Homer's visit to Cullercoats where the artist lived for some 18 months in 1881/82. With the assistance of colleagues in the Cullercoats Local History Society, and the support of the Laing Art Gallery in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tony organised and staged the Winslow Homer Cullercoats Centenary Exhibition which was held in The Bay Hotel in Cullercoats in the summer of 1981. The Bay Hotel (formerly The Huddleston Hotel), was where Winslow Homer lodged when he first arrived in the village of Cullercoats in 1881.

New information on Winslow Homer's stay in Cullercoats came to light following the Cullercoats Centenary exhibition, and Tony has continued this research over the past few years. David Tatham, Professor of Fine Art at Syracuse University, New York, encouraged Tony to put pen to paper and his book entitled "Winslow Homer in England" will be published by Hornby Editions in Maine in the Spring of 2004.

Tony's interest in Winslow Homer has widened to include the whole of the artist's life and works, and he established a website devoted to Homer in late 2000. The website continues to be updated on an ongoing basis, and a long-term objective is to have an image of every known work by Homer shown on the website. You may contact Tony directly at Tony@winslow-homer.org or visit the website at www.winslow-homer.org.

Homer's House Tynemouth (The Watchhouse)