Footnotes

Provenance
The Artist, by whom gifted to
Lady Helen Cassel, thence by descent to the present owner
Private Collection, U.K.

Literature
David Coombs with Minnie Churchill, Sir Winston Churchill: His Life and His Paintings, Running Press, Philadelphia, 2004, p.240, fig.512 (C 525) (col.ill.)

"It seems to me that, of all the countries in the world, this country is the one that should direct the attention of painters to the sea ... In the endless interpretations of those changing forms we will find a source of inspiration and a source of culture which ought to contribute to the general movement of our island life." (Sir Winston Churchill, from 'Sea Power' in Art, July 1937)

In his Catalogue Raisonné of Sir Winston Churchill's collected works, David Coombs gives the painting the informal title Branksome Dene, which places it as a view from the home of Churchill's close friend the financier Sir Ernest Cassel on the south coast of England.

It is an important and truly unique work that gives insight into Churchill's earliest motivations, influences and ambitions as an artist. Moreover, it is a work that combines his passion for both painting and the sea, and in so doing draws together his personal and political life.

Created in the earliest period of Churchill's practice as an artist, the painting successfully captures the calm atmosphere of the scene. It was the light, colour and mood of the sea that inspired the numerous seascapes that Churchill produced during his lifetime - from the coast of England to the south of France and even Miami, he spent many happy days with his paints and brushes by the sea.

A year before gifting the present painting to the wife of his friend, Churchill first took up a brush in 1915. At that time, he was enjoying a much-needed retreat from political life in the Surrey countryside. It was during this period that he was encouraged to take up painting in order to counter a bout of deep depression. He swiftly became deeply devoted to his new 'pastime', taking up paints and brushes at home, with friends and on holidays. As David Coombs has written, "It was the challenge and difficulty of capturing satisfactorily the scene before him which proved such a tonic to his mind."

From the outset Churchill sought to learn as much as possible about painting technique to develop his skills. He benefitted from knowing some of the greatest artists of the day, including Sir John Lavery, Walter (Richard) Sickert and William Nicholson, all of whom offered Churchill wisdom and advice. Alongside these painters was the British sea painter (Albert) Julius Olsen RA, who was a particular influence on his sea paintings. Churchill also sought to study from those artists he admired, travelling to Paris to see the Impressionists, sought out paintings by Turner, and copied the works of the great masters in order to apply their techniques.

For the composition in the present painting Churchill fixes our gaze out to sea. The work is a tightly framed, compressing view of the coastline. The white cliffs reach out along the horizon out to the ship which thoughtfully structures the work and acts as a focus of the picture. Our view is enclosed by trees, lending a sense of intimacy to the work, with the foliage enhancing the horizon and cloud-filled sky. Churchill gently infuses the work with a sense of peace and serenity. The painting may be read as a moment of stillness before a gathering storm ahead, and the demanding times for which Churchill is perhaps most famous.

Barry Phipps is an art historian and Fellow of Churchill College, University of Cambridge and we are grateful to him for compiling this catalogue entry.