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Composition of children

W. Morrison

1869

oil

From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum

Impressionism Realism Late 19th Century

Dominant colour

Composition of children is a 1869 oil by W. Morrison, a Impressionism work, held at Victoria and Albert Museum.

Who painted this?: W. Morrison
When & what style?: 1869 · Impressionism
Where can I see it?: Victoria and Albert Museum

About this work

This painting shows five round scenes arranged in a half-circle. Each scene has a naked child holding a shield with a symbol on it. The background is dark, and the kids look like they’re in a storybook. The edges have fancy gold patterns and swirls. The shields have Latin words like *GULF* and *TECT*. These might stand for ideas or skills, but it’s not clear what they mean without more context. If you like this style, check out Impressionism.

The story of this work

Overview

A decorative lunette painting depicts three children, each holding a shield inscribed with one of the words "SCULPTURE," "ARCHITECTURE," or "PAINTING." Commissioned for the upper recesses of rooms 100 and 101 in the National Competition Gallery, it was part of a larger decorative scheme completed between 1864 and 1876 under the direction of Richard Redgrave and Henry Cole. The lunettes were removed before World War II, stored, and later conserved and reinstalled in their original locations in 2010. The gallery, used for displaying and judging art students' work, featured both decorative and…

Read the full account in the museum source.

About the artist

Artist

W. Morrison

W. Morrison’s paintings of kids in the 1860s look like photos that somehow forgot the camera was there—tiny hands clutch chalk, hats sit crooked, one girl’s braid dangles like a question mark. The faces feel alive…

See the richer artist page