catalog text
JOHN MOGFORD, R.I.
British, 1821-1885
"A Scottish Loch at Sunrise"
Oil on canvas | Signed lower right "John Mogford"
Item # 109YWG10X
A sweeping landscape view, this lovely scene captures the rising sun as it casts a golden hue across the still waters of the loch while cattle and farmers are ferried across. The layers of mountainous cliffs in the distance shift from greens and reds to pinks and purples as the haze of the atmosphere skews the hues of reflected color. Mogford's ability to capture the drama of cliffs is a hallmark of his work and it is well-developed in the present example where they are an exquisite backdrop, an afterthought that frames the scene and emphasizes the nostalgia of untouched rugged scenery. The little house on the hill is almost missed behind the vibrant burning autumnal hues of the tree grove stretching into the sky, but here we see a home with a view of the endless mountains and glassy waters while cattle meander in the opaque shadows below.
Executed in oil on canvas, the work is signed in his typical script lower right "John Mogford" and retains an early Frost & Reed label with their title and inventory number verso. It is housed in an early pierced giltwood frame of very good quality.
JOHN MOGFORD
Born to the Devonshire landscape watercolour painter Thomas Mogford (British, 1809-1868) in London on October 15th of 1821, John Mogford studied at the schools at Somerset House School of Design under Alexander Dyce (British, 1798-1869) and the Royal Academy in Kensington. He married the daughter of the painter Francis Danby A.R.A. in 1844 at the age of 21 and from 1846 until his death in 1885 he was very active in all of the major London exhibitions. His emphasis was on sweeping landscape scenes and he was particularly effective at his studies of rocks and cliffs over water. He was a prolific painter and is recorded as having exhibited 33 paintings at the Royal Academy, 28 at the British Institute, 20 at Suffolk Street and 292 at the New Water-Colour Society (later being the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours) as well as other exhibitions for a total of 392 exhibited works recorded. He achieved full member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters and an associate member of the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours in 1866 (full member in 1867). He also was awarded the first prize at the Sydney International Exhibition of 1879.
His work remains highly sought-after and is held in the permanent collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum, the National Galleries of Victoria in Melbourne, the Sunderland Museum, Bradford Museums and Galleries, the Walker Art Gallery, Gallery Oldham, Guildhall Art Gallery and the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
Artist Listings & Bibliography:
- E. Benezit Dictionary of Artists, Vol. IX, Gründ, 2006, p. 1088
- A Dictionary of Artists Who Have Exhibited Works in the Principal London Exhibitions From 1760-1893, Algernon Graves, Kingsmead, 1973, p. 193
Measurements: 22" H x 36 1/4" W [canvas]; 28 1/8" H x 42 7/8" W x 2 3/4" D [frame]
Condition Report:
Professionally cleaned and conserved with fresh damar varnish applied to surface. In excellent overall condition. Linen is sound and wax lining remains sturdy. Surface is taut and with only minimal craquelure throughout. Original stretcher and keys. Frame is of the period, probably the first frame; this has the expected shrinkage cracks in the composition and gilding losses/inpainting/etc. Under UV examination, the fresh varnish flares in a few areas, spot of inpainting in the mid-upper-left sky, a few dots of touch up in the sky here and there, the upper left and right corners with some flaring suggestive of old inpaint/touchup. Overall a very fine presentation.