Beschreibung:

Attributed to Henry Brocas Snr. (c1760 - 1837) “Watermill, thought to be the O’Sullivan Flax Mill at Blarney,” c. 1810, watercolour on paper, 66cms x 47cms (26” x 18 ½”). Dating from the early nineteenth century, this watercolour painting of a mill by a river can be confidently attributed to Henry Brocas the Elder. The location of the building (not given on the watercolour), has been identified by Alison Muir, researcher on the history of Irish mills, as likely the five-storey mill that once stood in the village of Blarney, beside the River Martin. Owned by James B. O’Sullivan, this flax mill flourished for several decades. However, today little or nothing remains of the buildings depicted by Brocas, as O’Sullivan’s mill was demolished to make way for the Blarney Woollen Mills. The watercolour is therefore an important document relating to Ireland’s industrial archaeology. The location is idyllic, and the artist clearly intended to represent how nature has been improved through the addition of these buildings and industrial works. Although best known for his portraits, mainly of actors, politicians and lawyers, Brocas also depicted landscapes in watercolour, using a rapid technique of representing leaves and trees that relates to the present work. In this painting, he depicts a range of industrial and domestic buildings, set in a woodland landscape beside a bridge. In the foreground, a party consisting of a man, woman and child, walk along a curving riverside path, viewing the mill and its surroundings. Rising five storeys, the mill is an impressive building, with the top of the waterwheel visible just behind the five arched bridge. It is protected by a high wall, extending along the riverbank. Brocas has enlivened the scene by adding in the figure of a man fishing by the bridge, and three men, also fishing, in a boat. Beside the mill are two bird houses, or dove cots, raised high on poles. Beyond the bridge is a three-storey house, seen from the rear. Another domestic house is visible on the left, a two-storey building with outbuildings attached. On the brow of the hill, behind the mill, is a ruin. At the time this watercolour was painted, there was an early eighteenth-century wing of Blarney Castle falling into ruin. Only a circular tower survives today, some distance from the castle. The windows on this eighteenth century wing correspond to Brocas’s view. On the extreme right in the watercolour is a series of low buildings. Including at least five artists, over two generations the Brocas' were influential in Dublin’s art world. Henry Brocas Snr was born in Dublin in 1762, the fifth son of Robert Brocas and his wife Bridget (neé Taylor) Largely self taught as an artist, in the 1790’s he lived in the Grafton Street area of Dublin, before settling around 1825 in Henry Street. In 1800 he was appointed to teach landscape and decorative painting at the Dublin Society’s Drawing Schools, a post which he kept until his death in 1837. Brocas set an example to students at the School by making sketching tours to beauty spots around Dublin, and sketching scenes from life, rather than working exclusively in the studio. His four sons were pupils at the Dublin Society and also became professional artists, giving the family a long association with the Schools. The family was also associated with the Society of Irish Artists, with the third son, William, serving as President. William was also a member of the RHA, elected in 1860. Brocas’s other three sons were James Henry Brocas born c 1790, Samuel Frederick, born in 1792, and Henry Jnr, who was born six years later. Samuel Frederick Brocas is best known for his views of Dublin, while James Henry Brocas was a landscape, portrait and equestrian painter: his landscapes and paintings of horses and cattle were shown at exhibitions in Dublin between 1801 and 1816. John Henry studied at the Dublin Society's Drawing Schools, winning awards in 1802 and the year following, as well as a medal for etc