We
throw the term "favorite" around a lot, maybe even a little too much. But
when we say that Sir William Russell Flint is a favorite, we're very
serious. Bud put together a list of illustrations we've had in our catalogs
and we've shown more pictures by Flint than anyone else. He's the only
person who's repeated as a cover artist, too. When it comes to classic,
romantic watercolor, he is our absolute favorite.Flint lived from 1880 to 1970 and was actively preparing his autobiography when he died just short of his 90th birthday. That book, In Pursuit, has only had one edition of 1050 copies, but Ralph Lewis has published two biographies of Flint based on the information therein. Of course, he couldn't reproduce all of the 120 plates and drawings from Pursuit, but he gave it a good shot.
His earliest work was for the Illustrated
London News from 1903 - 1907 during which
time he recorded current events. His first book illustrations were for
King Solomon's Mines in 1905, followed by Of the Imitation of Christ
in 1908, Song of Songs (which is Solomon's), two volumes of
Savoy Operas (Gilbert and Sullivan) and Marcus Aurelius in 1909
and 1910, and then his splendid four volume, 48 plate, Le Morte D'Arthur
in 1910 - 1911, an image from which appears above.
The Scholar Gipsy and The Heroes (1912) and The Canturbury Tales of Geoffrey Chaucer (1913) quickly followed. The image at right, from Heroes, shows WRF at his prime, with subject matter to match his talent. A similar book from this era, The Odyssey, was painted in 1914, but WWI delayed the printing until 1924. He continued to illustrate color-plate books through 1929 and his style developed a distinct oriental cast. While still excellent technically, it lost some of the warmth and romanticism that was so powerful in his earlier work. This is especially evident in Judith and Tobit and Susanna. The Odyssey, because of its copyright date, is often assumed to be in this later style.
During this period, he was featured in two important series of book:
Famous Watercolour Painters (at left) and Famous Etchers. He
became an associate of the Royal Academy in 1924 and a full member in 1933.
He became an associate of the Royal Water Colour Society in 1914, a full
member in 1917 and president of the Society in 1936. A well-illustrated 1943
biography entitled More Than Shadows documented his remarkable career
to that date.
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As an artist, Flint was successful enough to indulge his passions - which consisted, it seems, of drawing. Drawings (from 1950) is a large volume of studies and sketches and plein-air paintings that reveal his love for art and stunning models. |
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He always worked from models, for even the least significant figure in a composition. He often executed multiple studies in chalk or conte - and Drawings is proof of his talent and facility. A limited edition was published that contained an original sketch tipped in. Except for a 1955 edition of Herrick's Poems, his later published works were for books he wrote himself. The delightful Models of Propriety (at left from 1951) featured a witty Flint poking fun at the models who had posed for him. It revealed a humorous side of him that was evident in several other books of his drawings. |
Books that followed included the stunning Minxes Admonished, from 1955 (at left), Shadows in Arcady, The Lisping Goddess and the dramatic Breakfast at Perigord with its striking pen & ink high contrast images. Also during the Fifties prints of his paintings were issued by banks and other commercial concerns. He was knighted in 1962. Throughout his life he was well respected by his fellow artists and very much admired, then and now, by the populace. His penchant for drawing and painting beautiful women was a certain crowd pleaser. He's still pleasing them today. |
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Information supplied by: http://www.bpib.com/flint.htm |
