Frank Bramley
British, b.1857, d.1915
Helen Graham Chalmers and her mother
- 1908
- Oil on canvas
- Mr D.M.R. and Mrs H. Cameron Bequest, 1990
- 2365 x 1955 x 70mm
- 89/212
Tags: chairs (furniture forms), children (people by age group), couches (reclining furniture), curtains (window hangings), daughters, dresses (garments), families, flowers (plants), furniture, girls, interior, mothers, people (agents), sunlight, white (color), windows, women (female humans)
Helen Chalmers was Frank Bramley’s niece and, in this Edwardian study, is clearly the centre of attention. The painting shows the naturalism of the Newlyn School to which Bramley belonged and whose members had a common desire ‘to study humanity in relation to its surroundings’. The School was also known for the impressionistic bravura of brush technique.
When this painting was exhibited at the Royal Academy in London in 1908 it was ‘hung on the line’, that is, it was placed at eye-level, which was a sign of Academic acceptance and approval.
Bramley was born in Lincolnshire and began his studies at Lincoln School of Art. In 1879 he left for Verlat’s Academy in Antwerp. After further travel in Europe he returned to England c.1884 and later became a member of the Newlyn School. He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1884 and was elected to the Royal Academy in 1911.
Exhibition History
See this work extra close-up.
Related
Frank Bramley room card
This room card was created for the exhibition Closer 16 December 2017 – 26 August 2018.
Commentary
A Fireside Whodunnit
Father’s Tea entered the collection as an unexpected and welcome gift in 2020, together with a small portrait sketch and a larger interior scene by the same artist, both signed ‘EC’. Given by the granddaughter of artist Elizabeth Graham Chalmers (1870–1951), the paintings were old and well-travelled, needing the kind of care that galleries can provide. Father’s Tea also presented an intriguing puzzle around authorship, which has only recently been firmly re-established. As our research continued into 2021, local conservator Olivia Pitts undertook cleaning and repairs in preparation for its inclusion in the 2021–22 exhibition Leaving for Work. This included the removal of old varnish, infilling, and repainting areas of loss, and saw its strength vibrantly reinstated. Completing the restoration was the expert repair and re-gilding of the original ‘Watts profile’ frame by framing conservator Anne-Sophie Ninino.