William Dyce
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William Dyce (; 19 September 1806 in Aberdeen14 February 1864) was a Scottish painter, who played a part in the formation of public
art education Visual arts education is the area of learning that is based upon the kind of art that one can see, visual arts—drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, and design in jewelry, pottery, weaving, fabrics, etc. and design applied to more practi ...
in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, and the South Kensington Schools system. Dyce was associated with the
Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (PRB), later known as the Pre-Raphaelites, was a group of English painters, poets, and art critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Michael Rossett ...
and played a part in their early popularity.


Life

Dyce was born on 19 September 1806 at 48 Marischal Street in Aberdeen, the son of William Dyce of Fonthill and Cuttlehill
FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...
and Margaret Chalmers of Westburn. His uncle was General Alexander Dyce FRSE. His older brother was
Robert Dyce Professor Robert Dyce FRSE (1798–1869) was a Scottish surgeon and Professor of Midwifery at Aberdeen University. Life He was born in Aberdeen on 30 November 1798 the son of Dr William Dyce of Fonthill and Cuttlehill FRSE (1770–1835) and his ...
FRSE. After studying at
Marischal College Marischal College ( ) is a large granite building on Broad Street in the centre of Aberdeen in north-east Scotland, and since 2011 has been the headquarters of Aberdeen City Council. The building was constructed for and is on long-term lease fr ...
, Dyce early showed an aptitude for design and began his artistic career 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 ...
schools in Edinburgh and London. He travelled to Rome for the first time in 1825, and while there he studied the works of
Titian Tiziano Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), Latinized as Titianus, hence known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian Renaissance painter, the most important artist of Renaissance Venetian painting. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, near Belluno. Ti ...
and
Poussin Nicolas Poussin (, , ; June 1594 – 19 November 1665) was a French painter who was a leading painter of the Classicism, classical French Baroque style, although he spent most of his working life in Rome. Most of his works were on religious and ...
. He returned to Aberdeen after nine months, and painted several pictures, including ''Bacchus nursed by the Nymphs of Nysa'', which was exhibited in 1827. He returned to Rome in 1827, this time staying for a year and a half, and during this period he appears to have made the acquaintance of the German Nazarene painter Friedrich Overbeck, who admired Dyce's ''Virgin and Child''. After these travels, Dyce settled for several years in Edinburgh. He supported himself by painting portraits at first, but soon took to other subjects of art, especially the religious subjects he preferred. In 1837 Dyce was given charge of the School of Design in Edinburgh, and was then invited to London, where he was based thereafter, to head the newly established Government School of Design, later to become the
Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public university, public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City, London, White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design uni ...
. Before taking up this post in 1838 he and a colleague were sent to visit France and Germany to enquire into design education there and prepare a report. He left the school in 1843, to be able to paint more, but remained a member of the Council of the school. The ideas that were turned in the following decade into the "South Kensington system" that dominated English art education for the rest of the century really have their origin in Dyce's work. In 1844, having been appointed professor of fine art in
King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...
, he delivered a significant lecture, ''The Theory of the Fine Arts''. In 1835 he had been elected an associate of the
Royal Scottish Academy The Royal Scottish Academy (RSA) is the country's national academy of art. It promotes contemporary art, contemporary Scottish art. The Academy was founded in 1826 by eleven artists meeting in Edinburgh. Originally named the Scottish Academy ...
, an honour he relinquished upon settling in London, and he was then made an honorary member. In 1844 he became an associate, and in 1848 a full member, of the London
Royal Academy of Arts 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 ...
; he also was elected a member of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia. Around this time, Dyce moved to Cheyne Walk in the artistic quarter of
Chelsea, London Chelsea is an area in West London, England, due south-west of Kilometre zero#Great Britain, Charing Cross by approximately . It lies on the north bank of the River Thames and for postal purposes is part of the SW postcode area, south-western p ...
. In 1849 when the new 'godless' florin coins were introduced by the Royal Mint, Dyce was responsible for the reverse design showing crowned cruciform shields bisected with emblems of the rose, thistle and shamrock in the angles. He also took on the similar design used on the reverse of the later Queen Victoria 'gothic head' florins which were issued from 1851 to 1887. Dyce is less known for, but nevertheless important as, the founder of the Motett Society (1840–1852), which sought to advance the restoration and liturgical use of long-neglected works of the English church. He was noted as an able organist, and is also reputed to have composed some musical works (unverified). Dyce died in
Streatham Streatham ( ) is a district in south London, England. Centred south of Charing Cross, it lies mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, with some parts extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. Streatham was in Surrey ...
in
Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
on 14 February 1864. There is a street in Streatham named for him – William Dyce Mews. A stained glass window in
St Machar's Cathedral St Machar's Cathedral is a Church of Scotland church (building), church in Aberdeen, Scotland, located to the north of the city centre, in the former burgh of Old Aberdeen. Technically, St Machar's is no longer a cathedral but rather a Kirk ...
in Aberdeen is jointly dedicated to Dyce.


Collections

Dyce's most highly thought of painting today is his exceptionally detailed seaside landscape of
Pegwell Bay Pegwell Bay is a shallow inlet in the English Channel coast astride the estuary of the River Stour north of Sandwich Bay, between Ramsgate and Sandwich in Kent. Part of the bay is a nature reserve, with seashore habitats including mudflats an ...
in Kent, now in the
Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the UK ...
. A rather atypical work, it is fully titled '' Pegwell Bay, Kent – a Recollection of October 5th 1858'', and was exhibited at the
Royal Academy summer exhibition The Summer Exhibition is an open art exhibition held annually by the Royal Academy in Burlington House, Piccadilly in central London, England, during the months of June, July, and August. The exhibition includes paintings, prints, drawings, sc ...
in 1860. The largest collection of Dyce's work is held at
Aberdeen Art Gallery Aberdeen Art Gallery is the main visual arts exhibition space in the city of Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1884 in a building designed by Alexander Marshall Mackenzie, with a sculpture court added in 1905. In 1900, it received the art ...
, Scotland. A lengthy assessment of his art and influence was written by
William Michael Rossetti William Michael Rossetti (25 September 1829 – 5 February 1919) was an English writer and critic. Early life Born in London, Rossetti was a son of exiled Italian scholar Gabriele Rossetti and his wife Frances Polidori, Frances Rossetti '' ...
in the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' Eleventh Edition.


Pre-Raphaelites

Dyce is the figure in Scottish art most associated with the Pre-Raphaelites. He befriended the young Pre-Raphaelites in London and introduced their work to the influential art critic
John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English polymath a writer, lecturer, art historian, art critic, draughtsman and philanthropist of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as art, architecture, Critique of politic ...
. His later work was Pre-Raphaelite in its spirituality, as can be seen in his ''The Man of Sorrows'' and ''David in the Wilderness'' (both 1860), which contain a Pre-Raphaelite attention to detail.


Westminster frescoes

Later in his career, Dyce turned to
fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...
-painting, and was selected to execute a series of murals at the newly completed the Palace of Westminster. In preparation for work at Westminster, he returned to Italy in 1845–47, to observe the fresco techniques employed there. He was particularly impressed by
Pinturicchio Pinturicchio, or Pintoricchio (, ; born Bernardino di Betto; 1454–1513), also known as Benetto di Biagio or Sordicchio, was an Italian Renaissance painter. He acquired his nickname (meaning "little painter") because of his small stature a ...
's frescoes in the Piccolomini Library in
Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...
, and by the works of
Perugino Pietro Perugino ( ; ; born Pietro Vannucci or Pietro Vanucci; – 1523), an Italian Renaissance painter of the Umbrian school, developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance. Raphael became his most famous ...
. After completing ''The Baptism of Ethelbert'' (1846) in the House of Lords Chamber, Dyce was commissioned to decorate the Queen's Robing Room in the Palace. He chose as his subject the Arthurian legends, He had some difficulty adapting the
Courtly love Courtly love ( ; ) was a medieval European literary conception of love that emphasized nobility and chivalry. Medieval literature is filled with examples of knights setting out on adventures and performing various deeds or services for ladies b ...
of Malory's tales to Victorian mores. The Arthurian legend became popular later in the Victorian period, but when Dyce received the commission to decorate the room in 1847, it was still an obscure subject. The legend soon became a major problem for Dyce, as it turns on the unfaithfulness of a queen, which causes the fall of a kingdom. After initially experimenting with a narrative sequence in which the tale would unfold in the room's panels, Dyce abandoned this in favour of an allegorical approach. In their finished form, Dyce's frescoes depict scenes from the Arthurian legend that are intended to exemplify the virtues inscribed beneath them. The actions of the figures in his frescoes appear to the modern viewer to convey qualities whose status as virtues is uncertain, and the connection between the episodes from the Arthurian legend and the virtues they represent is sometimes difficult to discern. The virtues depicted are ''Mercy'', ''Hospitality'', ''Generosity'', ''Religion'', and ''Courtesy''. Two projected frescoes, ''Courage'' and ''Fidelity'', were never executed. Dyce was working on the frescoes in Westminster when he collapsed, and later died at his home in Streatham on 14 February 1864. He was buried at St Leonard's Church, Streatham. A nearby drinking fountain, designed in the
neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...
style by Dyce, was subsequently dedicated to him by the parishioners.


Family

In 1850 Dyce married Jane Bickerton Brand (died 1885). Dyce's nephew (his sister's son) was the engineer
William Dyce Cay William Dyce Cay, MICE FRSE (28 March 1838 – 13 December 1925) was a Scottish civil engineer. He was responsible for the majority of late 19th century works to Aberdeen harbour. He was described by his cousin, James Clerk Maxwell, as a "water ...
, and his niece was the social activist Meredith Jemima Brown.


Gallery of works

File:Lamentation over the Dead Christ - William Dyce - ABDAG000705.jpg, ''Lamentation over the Dead Christ'', 1835,
Aberdeen Art Gallery Aberdeen Art Gallery is the main visual arts exhibition space in the city of Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1884 in a building designed by Alexander Marshall Mackenzie, with a sculpture court added in 1905. In 1900, it received the art ...
File:King Joash Shooting the Arrow of Deliverance.png, ''King Joash Shooting the Arrow of Deliverance'', 1844, Hamburger Kunsthalle File:William Dyce - St Joseph - WGA07375.jpg, ''St Joseph'', 1847,
Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a List of British royal residences, royal residence at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, about west of central London. It is strongly associated with the Kingdom of England, English and succee ...
File:The Highland Ferryman by William Dyce - William Dyce - ABDAG003212.jpg, ''The Highland Ferryman'', 1857,
Aberdeen Art Gallery Aberdeen Art Gallery is the main visual arts exhibition space in the city of Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1884 in a building designed by Alexander Marshall Mackenzie, with a sculpture court added in 1905. In 1900, it received the art ...
File:Titian Preparing To Make His First Essay In Colouring by William Dyce - William Dyce - ABDAG003211.jpg, ''Titian Preparing To Make His First Essay in Colouring'', 1856–1857,
Aberdeen Art Gallery Aberdeen Art Gallery is the main visual arts exhibition space in the city of Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1884 in a building designed by Alexander Marshall Mackenzie, with a sculpture court added in 1905. In 1900, it received the art ...
File:Beatrice - William Dyce - ABDAG003217.jpg, ''Beatrice'', 1859,
Aberdeen Art Gallery Aberdeen Art Gallery is the main visual arts exhibition space in the city of Aberdeen, Scotland. It was founded in 1884 in a building designed by Alexander Marshall Mackenzie, with a sculpture court added in 1905. In 1900, it received the art ...


References


Notes


Citations


Sources

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External links

*
The Quest for the Grail: Arthurian Legend in British Art, 1840–1920

Phryne's list of pictures in accessible collections in the UK

The Pre-Raph Pack
– More about the artists, the techniques they used and a timeline spanning 100 years * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dyce, William 1806 births 1864 deaths 19th-century Scottish painters Scottish male painters Artists from Aberdeen Academics of King's College London Academics of the Royal College of Art Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Royal Scottish Academicians Royal Academicians 19th-century Scottish male artists Pre-Raphaelite painters