Samuel Palmer (1805-1881)
England

Samuel Palmer was a visionary; his paintings foretold of impressionism and Van Gogh. He was born in London, and the first of his work was exhibited at the Royal Academy when he was 14. Palmer took great inspiration from William Blake and J.M.W. Turner, and from his honeymoon in Italy in 1838 left him with glorious images which would be retained in his mind while he painted. In 1826 he moved to Shoreham with his family. There he formed the Ancients with George Richmond and Edward Calvert. They were all followers of Blake, and possessed Medieval mysticism from which their name originated. Shoreham was ideal for the fostering of Palmer's genius. He was sheltered from the industrial society he so loathed. Palmer's first notable works were of landscapes. They were at the same time simple and visionary and religious and symbolic. His paintings often displayed the presence of God through the sun or the moon. Palmer's medium of choice was watercolor and gouache, yet he also used ink, chalk, and oil for portraits, and took to engraving in 1835. His watercolors gave him freedom to paint vividly and imaginatively. But by the 1830s, his creativity was waning. He attempted to regain it through travel. After his visit to Italy, he began working with oil, for the purpose of producing art that could support his wife and children. In 1861, after the death of his son, Palmer suffered frustration and moved to Redhill to recreate his early works.

Works

The Rest on the Flight into Egypt (1825) oil and tempera
Coming from Evening Church (1830)
Pear Tree in a Walled Garden (1829) Watercolor and gouache
In a Shoreham Garden (1829) watercolor and gouache
Moonlight, a landscape with sheep (1831-1833) pen and ink

Additional Information
A Review of Two Works Related to Samuel Palmer
http://landow.stg.brown.edu/cv/Reviews/palmer.html

Source:
Xrefer. Xrefer. 2001. <http://www.xrefer.com/>