Attributed to John Simmons (c.1823-1876) – Signed J Fisher (fl. 1849-1858) Self Portrait Wearing a Cravat

£450.00

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Watercolour portrait painted in a feigned oval with gum arabic and white highlights on paper laid onto board. Signed J. Fisher and dated 1845, (lower right). Housed in a new mount in an old, gilded frame. A label on the back of the previous frame attributes the portrait to John Simmons (painted by himself) with Frost & Reed Gallery label. Provenance: From the collection of George Withers (1946-2023).

Painting: 7 3/8 x 6 in. (18.8 x 15.1 cm.)
Frame: 11 5/8 x 9 5/8 inj. (29.5 x 24.5)

There are some brown foxing stains on his waistcoat otherwise the condition is good. No conservation work has been carried out on this watercolour.

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Simmons, John (c.1823-1876)

Description

Artists would sometimes use a pseudonym if they thought it might help with their career prospects, this would help explain the conflicting evidence behind this intriguing portrait. The label on the back of the original frame attributes the work to the miniaturist and later to become fairy artist John Simmons, however the watercolour is signed John Fisher and dated 1845. Turns out both artists were living in the Clifton area of Bristol. Not much is known of either of these artists, especially J Fisher, however in 1849 J Fisher’s first entry to the Royal Academy was a portrait of himself, he carried on exhibiting portraits of other people at the RA until 1858. John Simmons was born in Clifton, near Bristol, and baptised in Bristol on 13 April 1823. In 1849, the same year Fisher exhibited his portrait, Simmons was elected to the membership of the Bristol Academy of the Fine Arts and established himself at its exhibitions as a painter of portrait watercolours and especially miniatures. In the mid 1860s, Simmons turned to fairy paintings. There appears to be no other portraits of Fisher or Simmons to compare with so it would seem from the evidence on the frame that the artist used a pseudonym. If Fisher and Simmons are the same person then he would have been around 22 years of age in the portrait.

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Simmons, John (c.1823-1876)

John Simmons was born in Clifton, near Bristol, and baptised in Bristol on 13 April 1823, the son of the bookbinder, John Simmons, and his wife, Elizabeth. Nothing is known of his childhood or education, though he seems to have lived at home into adulthood, at 7 Bush Street, St James, Clifton, with his father and two sisters, Mary and Eliza, who were both dressmakers and milliners. His father ran his bookbinding business with John Oliver at 3 Little John Street, Bristol, until 1844. In 1849, Simmons was elected to the membership of the Bristol Academy of the Fine Arts, and established himself at its exhibitions as a painter of portrait watercolours and especially miniatures. Later, he would teach as well as show there. In 1857, he married Emily Bennett, who may be identified as a dressmaker living at Byron Cottage, Broadway, Horfield, north of Bristol. They settled at 9 Oakfield Place, Clifton, along with Simmons’ father and sisters. Emily would give birth to four children: Edward, Frank, Emily and Edith. In the mid 1860s, Simmons turned to fairy paintings. These invariably portray Titania, Queen of the Fairies, as an unattainable, pale fleshed nude set within a bower of exotic flowers. The erotic charge of such images is self-evident. However, the technical means by which Simmons created their atmosphere should not be under-estimated. His delicate application of pure watercolour gives an otherworldly quality even to a more naturalistic subject, such as the present work, Italian Beauty. Simmons died in Bristol in November 1876, and was buried at Arnos Vale Cemetery on the seventeenth of that month. Following his death, a subscription was raised in order to provide for his widow and children.

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