This work is from William Sutton’s student period and shows his early technical abilities with watercolour, which he continued to develop throughout his career. The house was in Hereford Street, across from the Canterbury College School of Art where Sutton was a student at the time

Although better known as a landscape artist, Sutton also produced numerous city scapes and architectural subjects, some of which focused on the facades of buildings. This interest culminated in a large watercolour series of Italian architectural subjects, completed during Sutton’s trip to Italy in 1973 –1974.

Born in Christchurch, Sutton studied at the Canterbury College School of Art. He was tutored by many well-known Christchurch artists, including Colin Lovell-Smith (1894-1960), Archibald Nicoll (1886-1953) and Cecil Kelly (1870-1954). Sutton began exhibiting with The Group, in 1946. Returning from his travels in Europe, he taught painting at the School of Art from 1949 until 1979. Sutton was awarded a C.B.E. in 1980.