"Straw Barge" on the Thames (After) Edward Duncan Oil on Linen 1898 by Richard Hayley Lever

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"Straw Barge" on the Thames (after) Edward Duncan Oil on Linen 1898
Well executed study of E. Duncan's Straw Barge … Read more "Straw Barge" on the Thames (after) Edward Duncan Oil on Linen 1898
Well executed study of E. Duncan's Straw Barge circa 1881, painted by Richard Hayley Lever dated 1898 a year before he went to England, where he proceeded to refine his skills as a painter under the tutelage of the British impressionists Julius Olsson and Algernon Talmage. Duncan's sketch and color plate of the Straw Barge painting was used in the book SIMPLE LESSONS IN WATER COLOR , Marine painting. Hayley Lever used that example to paint his interpretation of "Straw Barge" in 1898. Lever attended Adelaide's Prince Alfred College from 1883 to 1891, during which time he received drawing lessons from the marine painter, James Ashton. As a boy, he loved to watch incoming clipper ships at the port of Adelaide, an experience that influenced his later penchant for maritime themes. Upon graduating from Prince Alfred College, he took classes with Ashton at the Norwood Art School and later attended Ashton's Academy of Art in Adelaide.
Oil on linen in a 20th century walnut frame with linen liner. From a Bay area collection estate.
Signed lower left "H Lever 1898"
on verso "Straw Barge" "Hayley Lever" (partially indistinguishable see images)
Image, 17"H x 22"W
Frame, 21"H x 26"W x .5"D

Hayley Lever's exceptional career path took him from the shores of his native Australia to those of England, and then the United States.[1] Described as an artist of "individuality,"[2] he refused to ally himself with any particular style or movement; rather, guided by his belief that "art is the re-creation of mood in line, form and color," he incorporated the precepts of Realism, Impressionism, Tonalism and Post-Impressionism into his art, applying those strategies in accordance with the emotion and aesthetic affect he wished to convey.[3] In America, where he achieved his greatest acclaim, he was viewed as a proto-modernist, lauded by critics such as Edgar Holger Cahill, who declared:

"in all his painting, whether it is of boats dancing on the waters of the Cornish coast, the ferry bridges and boats and streets of Gloucester, Massachusetts, the steaming asphalt highways of New York City, or the gently upheaving Catskills about Woodstock, it is always Lever who addresses us.[4]"

Hayley Lever was born on September 28, 1875 in Bowden Tannery, a suburb of Adelaide, Australia.[5] The son of Albion W. Lever and his wife, Catherine (Hayley) Lever, he was christened Richard, but as a professional artist he used his second and last names only.

Lever attended Adelaide's Prince Alfred College from 1883 to 1891, during which time he received drawing lessons from the marine painter, James Ashton. As a boy, he loved to watch incoming clipper ships at the port of Adelaide, an experience that influenced his later penchant for maritime themes. Upon graduating from Prince Alfred College, he took classes with Ashton at the Norwood Art School and later attended Ashton's Academy of Art in Adelaide. During these years, Lever spent his free time painting and sketching in the local countryside, exhibiting his work at the Adelaide Easel Club and at other local venues. His interest in painting outdoors was likely influenced, to some extent, by the achievements of artists such as Tom Roberts, Charles Conder and other painters of the so-called "Heidelberg School," who introduced the tenets of Impressionism and pleinairism to Australian art during the late 1880s and early 1890s.

A turning point in Hayley Lever's artistic evolution occurred in the autumn of 1899, when he sailed to England for further study. He initially went to London, studying the art of both the past and present in the city's galleries and museums. In early January of 1900, he settled in St. Ives, an ancient fishing port and art colony on England's Cornish seacoast, where he proceeded to refine his skills as a painter under the tutelage of the British impressionists Julius Olsson and Algernon Talmage. Working out of a studio located on the top floor of a local art gallery, he painted views of the town and harbor, as well as scenes of Devon. In keeping with the tonal impressionist proclivities of St. Ives painters at that time, he became especially interested in conveying evening effects, going on to paint atmospheric moonlight scenes with soft brushwork and a low-keyed palette. At the same time, Lever was also looking beyond St. Ives for inspiration. He continued to make trips to London and his proximity to the Continent allowed him to travel to Paris, where he familiarized himself with styles such as Impressionism and Post-Impressionism and exhibited his paintings at the Salon. Biography from Spanierman Gallery (retired)
Born in Adelaide, Australia, Hayley Lever was known for his town-shore landscapes and still-life painting in a style that combined impressionism with vivid colors and strong lines of realism---post impressionism. In his use of color, he was deeply influenced by Vincent Van Gogh. He freely explored numerous styles based on impressionism but was never locked into any particular style.

He showed early art talent and traveled to England in 1893. He studied art in London and then painted at an artists' colony in Cornwall on the seacoast of St. Ives where he began his seacoast paintings. He received much attention in Europe for these works. In 1908, he did a series of paintings called "Van Gogh's Hospital, Holland" expressing the profound influence he felt of that artist.

Lever came to America in 1911, encouraged by American artist Ernest Lawson whom he knew in France, and was soon counted among the most widely exhibited artists in New York City. Many of his scenes were of Manhattan. He had a summer studio in Gloucester, Massachusetts and from 1919 to 1931 taught at the Art Students League in New York City. He also became Director of the Studio Art Club in Mount Vernon, New York.

Lever imparted to his students the following message: "Art is the re-creation of mood in line, form and color. If I were confined to my own back yard for the rest of my life, I'd still have more pictures in my mind than I would have time to paint. Art is nothing but having a good time"

He died in Mount Vernon, New York in 1958, having suffered ill health the last few years of his life.

He received many awards and critical acclaim and his works were purchased by major American museums, such as New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art and Washington's Phillips Collection and Corcoran Museum. Source: Michael David Zellman, "Three Hundred Years of American Art" See less