Alexander Carse (c. 1770 – February 1843) was a Scottish painter known for his scenes of Scottish life. His works include a large canvas of George IV's visit to

Leith Leith (; ) is a port area in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is home to the Port of Leith. The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of ...

and three early paintings of football matches.

Life

Carse was born in

Innerwick Innerwick () is a coastal civil parish and small village, which lies in the east of East Lothian, from Dunbar and approximately from Edinburgh. Name The name Innerwick is of Anglo-saxon origin and means inland farm or dwelling place. It was ...

East Lothian East Lothian (; ; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a Counties of Scotland, historic county, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921. In ...

to William and Catherine Carse, and was baptised early in 1770. Carse started at the Trustees Drawing Academy of Edinburgh in 1801; here he studied Dutch painting, which influenced his later representations of interiors. He was taught by David Allan, who was a strong influence on his early style. By 1808 he was described as the best painter of village scenes by the Scottish antiquarian the 11th Earl of Buchan. Covenanters in a Glen

The foot-ball play by Alexander Carse maybe 1830

In 1795 Carse painted a group portrait of himself and what are believed to be his mother and sister. The painting shows a painter's room, with his mother reading the Bible to her two children, now adults. This work is currently in the

National Galleries of Scotland The National Galleries of Scotland (, sometimes also known as National Galleries Scotland) is the executive non-departmental public body that controls the three national galleries of Scotland and two partner galleries, forming one of the Nation ...

collection. By his early thirties Carse was exhibiting paintings in London at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

and at the

British Institution The British Institution (in full, the British Institution for Promoting the Fine Arts in the United Kingdom; founded 1805, disbanded 1867) was a private 19th-century society in London formed to exhibit the works of living and dead artists; it ...

. In 1812 – the year that he moved to London – Carse exhibited ''Country Relations'', which is regarded as one of his best works. For the next eight years he worked hard to establish himself as a competitor to David Wilkie. In 1819 they both painted versions of Allen's ''Penny Wedding'' (A Penny Wedding is a Scottish custom where the guests pay for the wedding and the surplus funds the new household.) Both paintings were exhibited but it was Wilkie who sold his painting to the Prince Regent. Despite Carse's attempts to take on Wilkie's style his business proved unsustainable and Carse moved back to Scotland. George IV landing at Leith

One of his largest and most detailed paintings is of the Royal visit by George IV to Leith in 1822. This was a rare visit by a reigning monarch to Scotland, which was arranged and organised by Sir

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European literature, European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'' (18 ...

. The painting is , and contains hundreds of figures and a large number of portraits. From 1810 Carse also made three paintings of football matches, which are said to be amongst the earliest pictorial records of the game. Carse is believed to have had two sons, who were both painters: William Carse and James Howe Carse.Lucy Dixon, 'Carse, Alexander (bap. 1770, d. 1843)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, Oct 200
accessed 12 Oct 2013
/ref> William worked in Scotland, whilst James emigrated to South Australia.James Howe Carse
Design and Art Australia Online, retrieved 13 October 2013 In the 1830s "Alexander Carse, portrait painter" is listed as living at 68 Abbey Hill, just north-east of

Holyrood Palace The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly known as Holyrood Palace, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood has s ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

. Carse died in poverty in February 1843, although the precise place and date of his death are unknown.

Legacy

There are numerous paintings by Carse in public collections in

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

, Glasgow and

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carse, Alexander People from East Lothian 18th-century Scottish painters 18th-century Scottish male artists Scottish male painters 19th-century Scottish painters 1770s births 1843 deaths Alumni of the Edinburgh College of Art 19th-century Scottish male artists