These are three of my favourites that I make a beeline for when I visit Norwich Castle.
- John Middleton
Lane Scene
Watercolour
32.2 - 47.6 cms
Norfolk Museums Service
Norwich Castle Museum
It may seem a strange thing to say but I have learnt so much about drawing from studying his delightful watercolours. The way he balances the elements of strong dark passages with loosely defined areas and brings his paintings into focus by using sharply defined edges sparingly.
Overlaid on this foundation, he adds suggestions of texture. He combines these elements to form paintings that give a sense of depth and light, yet surprisingly, there is very little ‘white paper’ left visible in the completed works. He avoids this becoming gloomy by using the opacity of the darker passages to contrast the translucency of the lighter tones so that the light reflecting back through the pigment glows.
- John Middleton
Blofield, Norfolk 1847
Watercolour
33 - 48.2 cms
Norfolk Museums Service
Norwich Castle Museum
Middleton is often overlooked in the rush to see the major names of John Sell Cotman and John Crome from the Norwich School. There appears to be nothing about him or his life anywhere online – his name turns up in connection with The Norwich School but apart from the few works available online there is nothing I can find, beyond the record of his tragically short lifespan 1827-1856.
- John Middleton
Alby Norfolk 1847
Watercolour
31.7 - 48.2 cms
Norfolk Museums Service
Norwich Castle Museum
The pictures all link to an online collection of his works. The images above are inexpert scans made from my postcards; the scanning has added a red cast to the images which is strictly inaccurate. Copyright information is not included on the cards but probably belongs to Norwich Castle Museum or the Norfolk Museums Service.
Tags: composition, John Middleton, landscape, Norwich Castle, Norwich School of Painters, painting, watercolour