Ebenezer Colls (1812-1887) was a British artist active during a vibrant and transformative period in British art history. While not as widely celebrated today as some of his towering contemporaries, his work, particularly in the medium of watercolour, offers a window into the artistic currents and tastes of the Victorian era. His known oeuvre, though seemingly modest in surviving records, positions him within the strong tradition of British landscape and marine painting.
The Man and His Time: Biographical Notes
Born in 1812, Ebenezer Colls lived through a significant portion of the 19th century, an era marked by industrial revolution, colonial expansion, and profound social change in Britain. This period also witnessed a flourishing of the arts, with a burgeoning middle class creating increased demand for paintings, particularly those depicting familiar British landscapes or evocative scenes. The name "Colls" itself has historical roots, believed to be derived from the Anglo-Saxon personal name "Coll," a diminutive form of Nicholas, with early records of the surname found in counties like Lincolnshire.
Ebenezer Colls passed away in 1887, leaving behind a legacy primarily as a watercolour painter. Specific details about his formal training or extensive exhibition history are not widely documented, which is not uncommon for many competent artists of the period who may have catered to a local or specific market rather than achieving national fame through institutions like the Royal Academy in London.
Artistic Focus: "Stormy Waters" and the Watercolour Tradition
The most prominently cited work by Ebenezer Colls is a watercolour titled "Stormy waters." This piece was notably sold at auction, for instance, fetching £1,125 in one recorded sale. The title itself is evocative, suggesting a dynamic and dramatic seascape or a landscape featuring turbulent water. Such subjects were popular in the 19th century, appealing to the Romantic sensibility that appreciated the sublime power of nature, as well as the Victorian interest in detailed observation.
Watercolour painting held a special place in British art. Initially considered a medium for preparatory sketches or amateur pastime, it rose to prominence in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, championed by artists who demonstrated its versatility and expressive potential. The establishment of societies like the Society of Painters in Water Colours (founded in 1804, later the Royal Watercolour Society) helped elevate the medium's status. Colls, working in the mid-to-late 19th century, would have inherited this rich tradition.
His choice of watercolour for a piece like "Stormy waters" would have allowed for both fluidity in depicting the movement of water and weather, and precision in capturing details of light and atmosphere. Victorian watercolours often combined meticulous detail with atmospheric effects, a balance that Colls likely pursued in his work.
The Context of 19th-Century British Landscape and Marine Art
To understand Ebenezer Colls's potential artistic environment, it's essential to consider the broader landscape of 19th-century British art. The towering figures of J.M.W. Turner (1775-1851) and John Constable (1776-1837) had, in the earlier part of the century, revolutionized landscape painting. Turner, with his dramatic, light-filled, and often abstract visions of nature's power, particularly in watercolour, set an almost impossibly high bar. Constable, with his deep affection for the Suffolk countryside and his commitment to capturing the transient effects of weather, brought a new naturalism to landscape art.
While Colls was of a later generation, the influence of these masters permeated British art. The Victorian era saw a continued passion for landscape. Artists like David Cox (1783-1859) and Peter De Wint (1784-1849) were highly respected watercolourists known for their fresh, direct depictions of the British countryside, often with a focus on rural life and atmospheric conditions. Cox, in particular, was admired for his vigorous handling and ability to capture wind and weather.
Marine painting also had a strong tradition, with artists like Thomas Luny (1759-1837), an earlier contemporary, specializing in detailed ship portraits and naval scenes. Later in the century, artists such as Clarkson Stanfield (1793-1867) and Edward William Cooke (1811-1880) produced highly popular and often dramatic marine paintings and coastal scenes, reflecting Britain's maritime power and the public's fascination with the sea. Colls's "Stormy waters" would fit comfortably within this genre, which often explored the sea's dual nature as a source of livelihood and a formidable, untamed force.
Another artist active during a similar period to Colls was Richard Spencer Barnett (active 1840-1874), who also focused on landscapes. While details of Barnett's specific style might vary, his activity overlaps with Colls, indicating a shared artistic milieu where landscape painting was a viable and appreciated genre.
The Victorian Art Market and Exhibitions
The Victorian era saw an expansion of the art market. The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition remained a key venue for artists to gain recognition, but numerous other galleries and societies emerged. The growing wealth of the industrial and merchant classes meant more patrons for art, though their tastes often leaned towards narrative subjects, sentimental scenes, or highly detailed landscapes that celebrated Britain's beauty or the picturesque qualities of foreign lands.
Artists like Myles Birket Foster (1825-1899) became immensely popular for his charming and highly detailed watercolour depictions of rustic English life and landscapes, often reproduced as engravings. His success highlights the public appetite for accessible and idyllic imagery. In contrast, the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, founded in 1848 by artists like William Holman Hunt (1827-1910), John Everett Millais (1829-1896), and Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-1882), advocated for a return to the intense colour and detailed observation found in art before Raphael, often applying this to literary, religious, or moral subjects, but also to landscape with an almost scientific precision.
While there's no direct evidence linking Ebenezer Colls to these specific movements or artists, he operated within this diverse and dynamic artistic environment. His focus on watercolour landscapes, particularly one titled "Stormy waters," suggests an alignment with the enduring British love for nature, rendered with the skill and sensitivity that the watercolour medium afforded.
Distinguishing Ebenezer Colls from Walter L. Colls
It is important to distinguish Ebenezer Colls, the watercolour painter, from another notable figure in the art world with a similar surname: Walter L. Colls (1860-1942). Walter L. Colls was a prominent British copperplate engraver, etcher, and photographer, particularly renowned for his work in photogravure. He was a key figure in the pictorialist photography movement and a member of the Linked Ring Brotherhood, an influential group dedicated to promoting photography as a fine art.
Walter L. Colls collaborated with significant figures like the photographer Peter Henry Emerson (1856-1936), whom he taught the photogravure process. Emerson himself was a pivotal figure in advocating for "naturalistic photography." Walter L. Colls's expertise in photogravure meant he was responsible for producing high-quality reproductions of photographs for publications and exhibitions, including for The Linked Ring annuals and Camera Notes. His work was highly praised for its technical perfection and artistic sensitivity. For example, he produced photogravures for Emerson's book "Wild Life on a Tidal Water" and was involved with publications like "Sun Artists."
The distinction is crucial: Ebenezer Colls (1812-1887) was primarily a painter, working with watercolour, active in an earlier part of the Victorian era. Walter L. Colls (1860-1942) belonged to a later generation and made his mark in the then-emerging field of art photography and high-quality reproductive printmaking. Their fields, while both artistic, were quite different.
The Legacy of Ebenezer Colls
The surviving information about Ebenezer Colls suggests he was a competent and skilled watercolourist whose work found a market. The sale of "Stormy waters" indicates that his art continues to hold value and interest for collectors of British watercolours. While he may not have achieved the widespread fame of some of his contemporaries, his work contributes to our understanding of the breadth and depth of artistic practice in 19th-century Britain.
Many artists of the Victorian era, like Colls, contributed to the rich visual culture of their time without necessarily becoming household names. They catered to a public that appreciated depictions of their own country's landscapes and the ever-fascinating sea. The medium of watercolour, with its immediacy and luminosity, was perfectly suited to these subjects.
Consider also the broader context of landscape art evolving through the century. Later Victorian landscape painters, such as Benjamin Williams Leader (1831-1923), continued to produce popular, often idyllic, views of the British countryside, sometimes with a more polished finish than the earlier Romantics. The Scottish artist Joseph Farquharson (1846-1935) became famous for his snow scenes, often featuring sheep, which were immensely popular and widely reproduced. While different in subject and perhaps style from Colls's "Stormy waters," these artists represent the continued appeal of landscape painting throughout the Victorian and Edwardian periods.
Even artists who specialized in other genres often turned to landscape. Sir Edwin Landseer (1802-1873), famed for his animal paintings, also produced powerful Scottish landscapes that served as backdrops for his subjects. The interconnectedness of genres and the pervasive interest in the natural world were hallmarks of the era.
Ebenezer Colls's "Stormy waters" likely captured a specific mood and moment in nature, a practice central to the British landscape tradition. Whether it depicted a coastal scene with crashing waves or an inland lake whipped by wind, the theme of nature's power and beauty was a perennial favorite. His work, therefore, sits within a lineage that valued both observation and emotional response to the environment.
Conclusion: An Artist in His Time
Ebenezer Colls (1812-1887) remains a figure whose artistic output is primarily known through specific examples like "Stormy waters." As a British watercolourist, he participated in a medium that had achieved significant prestige and popularity in his homeland. His chosen subject matter, as suggested by the title of his known work, aligns with the enduring fascination for landscape and marine themes in British art, themes explored by countless artists from the grand masters like Turner and Constable to the many skilled practitioners who enriched the Victorian art scene.
While the historical record may not provide an exhaustive biography or a vast catalogue of his works, Ebenezer Colls represents the many artists who contributed to the artistic fabric of the 19th century. His work serves as a reminder of the diverse talents that flourished during this period, each adding their unique perspective to the depiction of the world around them. His art, like that of many of his contemporaries, offers a quiet testament to the beauty and drama of nature, captured through the delicate yet expressive medium of watercolour. His place, though perhaps modest, is secure within the narrative of British art, a painter who engaged with the subjects and techniques of his time.
