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Lot Essay
Butler first found interest in painting at an early age, under the influence of her father Captain Henry Butler, a grandson of the 11th Viscount Mountgarret, and himself an amateur artist. As she began to develop her artistic skill she began to correspond with London artist Paul Jacob Naftel (1817-1891), before meeting and training with artists of the Newlyn School, including fellow Irish-born artists Norman Garstin (1847-1926) and Stanhope Forbes (1857-1947), from whom she learned about the impressionists.
The present watercolour is a typical example of Butler’s work: capturing a scene of domesticity set against the local Irish landscape. It was such scenes that would lead to her achieving recognition and merit for her artistic output. She exhibited at the Irish Fine Arts Society in the early 1880’s, becoming a member of the Royal Academy in 1893, and then a full member of the Royal Watercolour Society in 1937. Following travels to London, Cornwall and Continental Europe, in 1895, Butler would return to her family home and later studio at Kilmurray, where Unpacking the picnic, on a hillside, Kerry was executed, and where she would remain for the rest of her life.
The present watercolour is a typical example of Butler’s work: capturing a scene of domesticity set against the local Irish landscape. It was such scenes that would lead to her achieving recognition and merit for her artistic output. She exhibited at the Irish Fine Arts Society in the early 1880’s, becoming a member of the Royal Academy in 1893, and then a full member of the Royal Watercolour Society in 1937. Following travels to London, Cornwall and Continental Europe, in 1895, Butler would return to her family home and later studio at Kilmurray, where Unpacking the picnic, on a hillside, Kerry was executed, and where she would remain for the rest of her life.