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Charles Cundall
(1890 - 1971)
Falmouth Harbour from the Town Quay, 1940
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Charles Cundall (1890 - 1971)
Size:
Height – 44.2cm
Width – 53.5cm
While Cundall made numerous sketching trips, travelling extensively in Europe, he was especially drawn to Paris. Painting en plein-air, directly on to prepared panels, the best of his work retains a vitality which he sometimes lost when working up the finished, larger, paintings in his studio. Saint-Cloud is a wealthy commune in the western suburbs of Paris, which at the time of this painting was being transformed by the extension of the métro line from Boulevard Exelmans. This painting was exhibited at the Old Grosvenor Galleries in 1923 in an exhibition of works by Charles Cundall, Harold Knight, H.M.Livens and Fairlie Harmar (1876-1945). One of thirty-two Cundalls included, four were of English views, with twelve French views (Paris and Normandy) and the remaining works of Italian topography.
Painter, potter and stained glass artist, born in Stratford, Lancashire. After working as a designer for Pilkington’s Pottery Company under Gordon Forsyth, Cundall studied at Manchester School of Art, obtaining a scholarship to the Royal College of Art, 1912. After World War I army service he returned to the Royal College in 1918, then from 1919 to 1920 attended the Slade, and furthered his studies in Paris. Cundall traveled widely in several continents and became noted for his panoramic pictures, such as Bank Holiday Brighton, in the Tate Gallery (accession no. NO4700). He was a member of NEAC, RP, RWS and other bodies and was a prolific RA exhibitor. He had first solo show at Colnaghi 1927. He was an Official War Artist in World War II, during which time he was sent to Quebec (1944). In the same year he was elected RA. His wife was the artist Jacqueline Pietersen.
His technical facility – especially when working on large panoramic canvases – was remarkable. His pictures are rich with texture, light and movement. He was equally at ease with aerial views, landscapes, seascapes and cityscapes, and was a master of crowd scenes. His work as an Official War Artist has never received the attention it merits.
