William Small - After the Storm

[After the Storm]
signed 'W. Small/1877'
294 Camden Road
oil on canvas
RA 1877

1843 - 1929.


Wlliam Small was born in Edinburgh in 1843 and received his artistic training at the Royal Scottish Academy Schools. He moved to London in 1865 and first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1869. He continued to show at the R.A. until 1900, having a total of twenty-two works accepted for exhibition there during that time. He also exhibited works at the Grosvenor Gallery and the New Watercolour Society. Paintings exhibited at the Royal Academy include "The Woodlands", "Waiting for Tide" and "Water Polo". His 1887 submission to the Royal Academy, entitled "The Last March", was purchased by the Chantrey Bequest. In 1870 he was elected an associate member of the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours, becoming a full member in 1883. His watercolours are often quite romantic and beautifully executed, being close in style to those of Fred Walker and his circle. He was made an honorary member of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1917. In addition to being a painter, he also worked as an illustrator from the 1860's onwards for such journals as Once a Week, Good Words, The Graphic, and Harpers amongst others. He was quite a prolific illustrator and was much imitated by lesser artists. He also illustrated several books of poetry, songs and children's stories. His work is now represented in the collections of the Leicester, Liverpool and Manchester Museums of Art.