Art, Edward Atkinson Hornel, Bringing in the mistletoe

Edward Atkinson Hornel

Edward Atkinson Hornel (1864-1933) was a Scottish painter of landscapes, flowers, and foliage, with children.
He was actually born in Australia, but of Scottish parents and considered himself to be Scottish. He was brought up in Scotland, at Kirkcudbright, and for most of his life lived and worked in Scotland. He studied for three years at Edinburgh Art School, followed by two years at Antwerp under Professor Verlat. He Returned to Scotland from Antwerp in 1885 and almost immediately met George Henry, a fellow Scottish painter. They both associated themselves with the Glasgow based Art movement and are usually considered to be of The Glasgow School.
The most significant painting produced by either of them was a ‘Hornel and Henry collaboration’; called
"The Druids Bringing In The Mistletoe" (1890),




a procession of Celtic priests bringing in the pagan sacred mistletoe. The subject matter is all about the mystical and magical practices of the ancient druid people. The two worked side by side to achieve this highly decorative, almost MAGICAL piece of work. Hornel used texture effects produced by loading and scraping, roughening, smoothing, and staining.
In 1893-94 the two artists spent a year and a half in Japan, where Hornel learned much about decorative design and spacing. Towards the close of the nineties his colours became more refined and more atmospheric, and his drawing more naturalistic. He began combining his technical ability as a draughtsperson with his emotional and poetic spirit. In 1901 he declined election to the Royal Scottish Academy on ethical grounds and a point of principal.

delete reply veryfrank wrote on Jan 10, '09 Thank you, I see what you are talking about.

delete reply philsgal7759 wrote on Aug 18, '08, edited on Aug 18, '08 love the misty magical feel of this thanks

delete reply aimlessjoys wrote on Aug 17, '08 Very lovely--I love the soft rich detail.

delete reply veryfrank wrote on Aug 17, '08 As I said in another post of Hornel's work "Amazingly beautiful detail and color, so soft and gentle. A wonderful introduction to this artist, thank you." His style and the Druids are truly a wonderful and magical combination.

delete reply nemo4sun wrote on Aug 17, '08 beautifull :)

delete reply wickedlyinnocent wrote on Aug 17, '08 Thanks, Loretta, very interesting work,I had never seen it. Druids sure fit Magic themes. Have a lovely day, hugs.

delete reply ruraldiva wrote on Aug 17, '08 What a supurb use of color to create this mystical procession. Thanks

delete reply starfishred wrote on Aug 16, '08 oh loretta I love it