Alexander Mann
Encyclopedia
Alexander Mann was a Scottish landscape and genre painter. He was a member of New English Art Club
and Royal Institute of Oil Painters
.
, Scotland
on January 22, 1853. He died in London
on January 26, 1908.
The second son of James Mann, merchant and collector, he took drawing lessons from the age of ten with Robert Greenlees (1820–94) and then attended evening classes at the Glasgow School of Art
, where Greenlees was headmaster.
In 1877 he went to Paris and enrolled at the Académie Julian
, and then studied under Mihály Munkácsy
and from 1881 to 1885 under Carolus-Duran
. From 1883-93 Mann exhibited in London at the Royal Academy
, Royal Institute of Oil Painters
, Fine Art Society, New Gallery, Ridley Art Club, New English Art Club
and Society of British Artists
, a society that appointed James McNeill Whistler
its President in 1886. At the same year he was invited to become the first Scottish member of the New English Art Club
and was joined by several of his friends, notably John Lavery
, Thomas Millie Dow
of the Glasgow Boys and Norman Garstin
.
Influenced by the Hague school and by Jules Bastien-Lepage
, his picture A Bead Stringer, Venice gained an honorable mention at the Salon in 1885. After a public controversy over this painting when it was exhibited at the Royal Glasgow Institute, Mann settled in England, at West Hagbourne
, Berkshire
, and later in the neighboring village of Blewbury
, where he painted a series of views of the Downs and portraits of country people. Mann traveled extensively in Britain, paying several visits to the coast in Angus
and Fife
, and to Walberswick
, Suffolk
.
His travels also covered Europe and the Americas. A visit to Venice
in 1884 was Alexander's first artistic venture beyond Britain and the immediate environs of Paris; this was followed by a voyage to the Caribbean
and the Southern States of America, perhaps inspired by American artist friend in Paris. From 1890 to 1892 he lived with his family in Tangiers. Later he travelled to Madrid
through Southern Spain
in 1892 accompanied by John Lavery
, another alumnus of the Académie Julian
.
He recorded his visits and ideas for studio compositions in sketchbooks, using photography as well to assist his memory of a subject. In 1895 Mann’s work was exhibited in London at the Barbican and in Dublin at the Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery
of Modern Art. But he preferred to "live away from the haunts of other artists" because the relative prosperity which he owed to his family made it unnecessary to pay much attention to exhibition institutions, patrons and dealers.
In 1893 he was elected a member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters
. Today he is regarded as one of the Glasgow Boys although he was never an active member.
although the apprenticeship with him didn't last long due to some incompatibility of temperament. Through Carolus Duran, Mann learned the importance of tonal values for the purpose of self expression, which had been shown in some of his early figure paintings, such as Artificial Flower Workers' and The Tapestry Workers.
Mann preferred the arcadia of the countryside. He painted gleaners, faggot gatherers, hop pickers and sheepfolds. Mann was also greatly attracted by the stillness of the deserted slow-moving waterways of rural England; the Alde and the Dorset Avon, beloved by many Scottish artists of the period. Another recurring subject is that of the children whether playing on the beach or asleep in the sun. His travelling led to paintings of Orientalist subjects such as some Arabian portraits or Tangier
beach scenes.
From his early training in Glasgow
, his early works followed the traditional Victorian landscape style, evoking a sense of prosaic naturalism and romanticism. Typical works include By the Findhorn, Morayshire and Sheepfold. Later, he moved to a much lighter palette. However his handling continued to be restrained, and for all the brilliant of his color, a respect of Corot-esque tonality was retained. Typical works include Tangiers scenes and some haystacks studies.
New English Art Club
The New English Art Club was founded in London in 1885 as an alternate venue to the Royal Academy.-History:Young English artists returning from studying art in Paris mounted the first exhibition of the New English Art Club in April 1886...
and Royal Institute of Oil Painters
Royal Institute of Oil Painters
The Royal Institute of Oil Painters, also known as ROI, is an association of painters in London and is the only major art society which features work done only in oil. It is a member society of the Federation of British Artists.-History:...
.
Biography
Alexander Mann was born in GlasgowGlasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
on January 22, 1853. He died in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on January 26, 1908.
The second son of James Mann, merchant and collector, he took drawing lessons from the age of ten with Robert Greenlees (1820–94) and then attended evening classes at the Glasgow School of Art
Glasgow School of Art
Glasgow School of Art is one of only two independent art schools in Scotland, situated in the Garnethill area of Glasgow.-History:It was founded in 1845 as the Glasgow Government School of Design. In 1853, it changed its name to The Glasgow School of Art. Initially it was located at 12 Ingram...
, where Greenlees was headmaster.
In 1877 he went to Paris and enrolled at the Académie Julian
Académie Julian
The Académie Julian was an art school in Paris, France.Rodolphe Julian established the Académie Julian in 1868 at the Passage des Panoramas, as a private studio school for art students. The Académie Julian not only prepared students to the exams at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts, but offered...
, and then studied under Mihály Munkácsy
Mihály Munkácsy
Mihály Munkácsy was a Hungarian painter, who lived in Paris and earned international reputation with his genre pictures and large scale biblical paintings.-Early Years of Munkácsy:...
and from 1881 to 1885 under Carolus-Duran
Carolus-Duran
Charles Auguste Émile Durand, known as Carolus-Duran , was a French painter and art instructor. He is noted for his stylish depictions of members of high society in Third Republic France.-Biography:...
. From 1883-93 Mann exhibited in London at the Royal Academy
Royal Academy
The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and...
, Royal Institute of Oil Painters
Royal Institute of Oil Painters
The Royal Institute of Oil Painters, also known as ROI, is an association of painters in London and is the only major art society which features work done only in oil. It is a member society of the Federation of British Artists.-History:...
, Fine Art Society, New Gallery, Ridley Art Club, New English Art Club
New English Art Club
The New English Art Club was founded in London in 1885 as an alternate venue to the Royal Academy.-History:Young English artists returning from studying art in Paris mounted the first exhibition of the New English Art Club in April 1886...
and Society of British Artists
Royal Society of British Artists
The Royal Society of British Artists is a British art body established in 1823 as the Society of British Artists, as an alternative to the Royal Academy.-History:...
, a society that appointed James McNeill Whistler
James McNeill Whistler
James Abbott McNeill Whistler was an American-born, British-based artist. Averse to sentimentality and moral allusion in painting, he was a leading proponent of the credo "art for art's sake". His famous signature for his paintings was in the shape of a stylized butterfly possessing a long stinger...
its President in 1886. At the same year he was invited to become the first Scottish member of the New English Art Club
New English Art Club
The New English Art Club was founded in London in 1885 as an alternate venue to the Royal Academy.-History:Young English artists returning from studying art in Paris mounted the first exhibition of the New English Art Club in April 1886...
and was joined by several of his friends, notably John Lavery
John Lavery
Sir John Lavery was an Irish painter best known for his portraits.Belfast-born John Lavery attended the Haldane Academy, in Glasgow, in the 1870s and the Académie Julian in Paris in the early 1880s. He returned to Glasgow and was associated with the Glasgow School...
, Thomas Millie Dow
Thomas Millie Dow
Thomas Millie Dow was a Scottish artist, a member of the Glasgow Boys school. He was a member of The Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour and the New English Art Club....
of the Glasgow Boys and Norman Garstin
Norman Garstin
Norman Garstin was an Irish artist associated with the Newlyn School of painters.He was born in Caherconlish, Co. Limerick, Ireland, and was involved in various professions such as journalism and gold mining in South Africa...
.
Influenced by the Hague school and by Jules Bastien-Lepage
Jules Bastien-Lepage
Jules Bastien-Lepage , was a French naturalist painter, a style related to the Realist movement.-Life and work:...
, his picture A Bead Stringer, Venice gained an honorable mention at the Salon in 1885. After a public controversy over this painting when it was exhibited at the Royal Glasgow Institute, Mann settled in England, at West Hagbourne
West Hagbourne
West Hagbourne is a village and civil parish in the Berkshire Downs south of Didcot. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire and from the former Wallingford Rural District to the district of South Oxfordshire....
, Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
, and later in the neighboring village of Blewbury
Blewbury
Blewbury is a village and civil parish at the foot of the Berkshire Downs about south of Didcot. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire.-Prehistory:...
, where he painted a series of views of the Downs and portraits of country people. Mann traveled extensively in Britain, paying several visits to the coast in Angus
Angus
Angus is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee City...
and Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
, and to Walberswick
Walberswick
Walberswick is a village on the Suffolk coast in England, across the River Blyth from Southwold. Coastal erosion and the shifting of the mouth of the River Blyth meant that the neighbouring town of Dunwich was lost as a port in the last years of the 13th century...
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
.
His travels also covered Europe and the Americas. A visit to Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
in 1884 was Alexander's first artistic venture beyond Britain and the immediate environs of Paris; this was followed by a voyage to the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
and the Southern States of America, perhaps inspired by American artist friend in Paris. From 1890 to 1892 he lived with his family in Tangiers. Later he travelled to Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
through Southern Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
in 1892 accompanied by John Lavery
John Lavery
Sir John Lavery was an Irish painter best known for his portraits.Belfast-born John Lavery attended the Haldane Academy, in Glasgow, in the 1870s and the Académie Julian in Paris in the early 1880s. He returned to Glasgow and was associated with the Glasgow School...
, another alumnus of the Académie Julian
Académie Julian
The Académie Julian was an art school in Paris, France.Rodolphe Julian established the Académie Julian in 1868 at the Passage des Panoramas, as a private studio school for art students. The Académie Julian not only prepared students to the exams at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts, but offered...
.
He recorded his visits and ideas for studio compositions in sketchbooks, using photography as well to assist his memory of a subject. In 1895 Mann’s work was exhibited in London at the Barbican and in Dublin at the Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery
Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery
Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane is an art gallery funded by Dublin City Council and located in Charlemont House in Dublin, Ireland. Charlemont House was originally the town house of James Caulfeild, the 1st Earl of Charlemont and was designed by Sir William Chambers.Previously called the...
of Modern Art. But he preferred to "live away from the haunts of other artists" because the relative prosperity which he owed to his family made it unnecessary to pay much attention to exhibition institutions, patrons and dealers.
In 1893 he was elected a member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters
Royal Institute of Oil Painters
The Royal Institute of Oil Painters, also known as ROI, is an association of painters in London and is the only major art society which features work done only in oil. It is a member society of the Federation of British Artists.-History:...
. Today he is regarded as one of the Glasgow Boys although he was never an active member.
Artistic style
Mann owed his drawing skills to Rodolphe Julien who regarded the study of the live model as indispensable to those who desired skilled draughtsmanship. However, his painterly techniques was required from Mihály MunkácsyMihály Munkácsy
Mihály Munkácsy was a Hungarian painter, who lived in Paris and earned international reputation with his genre pictures and large scale biblical paintings.-Early Years of Munkácsy:...
although the apprenticeship with him didn't last long due to some incompatibility of temperament. Through Carolus Duran, Mann learned the importance of tonal values for the purpose of self expression, which had been shown in some of his early figure paintings, such as Artificial Flower Workers' and The Tapestry Workers.
Mann preferred the arcadia of the countryside. He painted gleaners, faggot gatherers, hop pickers and sheepfolds. Mann was also greatly attracted by the stillness of the deserted slow-moving waterways of rural England; the Alde and the Dorset Avon, beloved by many Scottish artists of the period. Another recurring subject is that of the children whether playing on the beach or asleep in the sun. His travelling led to paintings of Orientalist subjects such as some Arabian portraits or Tangier
Tangier
Tangier, also Tangiers is a city in northern Morocco with a population of about 700,000 . It lies on the North African coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar where the Mediterranean meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel...
beach scenes.
From his early training in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, his early works followed the traditional Victorian landscape style, evoking a sense of prosaic naturalism and romanticism. Typical works include By the Findhorn, Morayshire and Sheepfold. Later, he moved to a much lighter palette. However his handling continued to be restrained, and for all the brilliant of his color, a respect of Corot-esque tonality was retained. Typical works include Tangiers scenes and some haystacks studies.