Figures Outside House British Edwardian Impressionist Figurative Oil Painting
Stourbridge, United Kingdom
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Dimensions
Wear Condition
Good
Material
Oil Paint
Style
Antique, Edwardian
Product Details
Description
This charming British Impressionist Edwardian figurative oil painting is by noted artist William Christian Symons. Painted circa 1905, the composition is a number of figures outside a grand house. In the foreground a lady sat on a wall is approached by a lady in white carrying a red parasol and a young girl in a red jacket. Both are wearing hats. Behind them several other figures are in a doorway. The house is covered in climbers and the right-hand side of the picture is bathed in light. The Impressionistic brushwork and impasto are superb. This is a lovely British Edwardian oil painting and an excellent example of Symons work.
Unsigned.
Signed verso.
Provenance: Private collection, UK.
Condition. Oil on canvas, image size is 24 inches by 22 inches and in good condition.
Frame. Housed in a ornate gilt Watts frame. Framed size is 32 inches by 30 inches and in good condition.
William Christian Symons (1845-1911) was an English decorative designer, and a painter in oil and watercolour. Symons was the elder son of William Martyn Symons by his wife Elizabeth White. His father, who came originally from Trerice, St. Columb, Cornwall, carried on a printing business in Bridge Street, Vauxhall, where Christian, his second child, was born on 28 November 1845. There was one other son and two daughters. Symons was educated at a private school in Penzance until he was sent at an early age to the Lambeth Art School, then under the direction of the influential educationalist John Charles Lewis Sparkes. In 1866 he entered the Royal Academy as a student for a short while, gaining that year a silver medal in the antique school. In 1869 for the first time one of his works (a portrait of his sister) was hung at the Academy Exhibition, to which he was an intermittent contributor until the year of his death, when he was represented by an 'Interior of Downside Abbey'. His easel pictures were also shown at the New English Art Club, the Institute of Painters in Oil, and various other galleries. In 1870 he was received into the Roman Catholic church, and began his long connection with the firm of Lavers, Barraud and Westlake, for whom he designed a number of stained windows. Symons became a member of the Royal Society of British Artists in 1881, but seceded with James McNeill Whistler in 1888. He only came personally before the public in 1899, when he acted as secretary to the celebrated dinner organised in honour of Whistler on 1 May. In 1899 he began the execution of his commission for certain mosaic decorations at Westminster Cathedral, the work by which he was chiefly known until the posthumous exhibition of his paintings and watercolours at the Goupil Gallery in 1912. He worked at Newlyn in Cornwall for some time, and though never a member of the school associated with that locality he contributed an account of it to The Art Journal in April 1890. In later life he lived almost entirely in Sussex. He died at Udimore, near Rye, where he is buried, on 4 September 1911. He married at Hampstead in 1885 Cecilia, daughter of J. L. Davenport of Wildemlow, Derby. He left nine children. two daughters and seven sons, all of whom survived him. The eldest, Mark Lancelot (1887–1935), a painter of portraits and subject pieces, exhibited occasionally at the New English Art Club. His second son, Philip, became Dom Thomas Symons ARCO (1887–1975) of Downside Abbey and later of Worth Abbey, where he is buried. One of his best oil pictures, 'The Convalescent Connoisseur', is in the Dublin Municipal Gallery of Modern Art. In the Mappin Art Gallery at Sheffield are 'In Hora Mortis' and 'Home from the War', while 'The Squaw' belongs to the Contemporary Art Society. The British Museum, the Manchester City Art Gallery, and the Brighton Art Gallery possess characteristic examples of his watercolours. His flower pieces are of particular excellence. Mr. Le Brasseur of Hampstead possesses the largest collection of his paintings. Symons was obviously influenced by Sargent and Babazon, but preserved his own individuality and did not allow his art to be affected by his friendship for Whistler.
Condition report:
Good
Wear Condition
Good
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Wear conditions
Excellent
Shows little to no signs of wear and tear.
Good
May show slight traces of use in keeping with age. Most vintage and antique items fit into this condition.
Average
Likely to show signs of some light scratching and ageing but still remains in a fair condition.
Apparent Wear and Tear
Visible signs of previous use including scratches, chips or stains.
Please refer to condition report, images or make a seller enquiry for additional information.
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Last updated: 12/02/2026
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