This rugged coastal view by Scottish artist William Beattie Brown (1831-1909) depicts a stony coastline with two children gathering wood. The air feels fresh with a brisk sea breeze.

Brown was a regular exhibitor at the Royal Scottish Academy and worked primarily in Edinburgh and the surrounding environs.

The success of this piece is partly due to its composition, which emphasises the curve of the shore as it draws the eye towards a distant pier. A dense cloud adds visual ‘weight’. Given Brown’s affinity with Edinburgh, it’s possible that the location is Portobello Beach - where a pier was opened in 1871. A label on the reverse refers to the east coast near ‘cochenyil’.

Brown was highly regarded and often praised in the Victorian press. An obituary mentions that his ‘work was always very prominent in the public eye, and always enjoyed great popularity.’ It also referred to his canvases as ‘remarkable for their admirable finish and fine appreciation of colour effect’. At a personal level, he was described as a ‘charming personality, ever cheery and buoyant. His wife was an accomplished contralto singer and also a painter.

Signed, framed and inscribed.

Learn more about William Beattie Brown in our directory.

Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 33” x 26½” / 84cm x 67cm
Year of creation: c. 1880
Condition: Artwork presents well. Light craquelure but the paint is stable. Frame with some light wear.
Artist’s auction highlight: £7,000 achieved for an oil painting in 1997 and again in 2001.