Henry Scott Tuke, R.A., R.W.S.

Possibly Renny Stradling (according to an inscription on the reverse)

Henry Scott Tuke, who was the master of capturing light reflections on water and human skin, this subtle watercolour sketch of a male nude sitting on the beach shows these skills even on a small scale . Painted circa 1924-26 it features one of his young male models probably Charlie Mitchell on the  sandy beach with its distinctive barnacle encrusted rocks at Newporth in Falmouth, Cornwall not far from where Tuke lived. It is thought that this watercolour was owned by Renny Stradling who was a young friend of Tuke's. Stradling had come to Falmouth with his friend Guy Allden in July 1924 staying at a house called The Nest. They came to visit Tuke in Swanpool so could have bought this sketch then (R1065). Tuke also met up with Stradling in Algiers in February 1925 and Tuke stayed with Stradling in Cassis in February 1926 travelling around the French riviera together. Stradling bought several works from Tuke in 1926 including a sketch (R 1181) which could also be this watercolour.

We are grateful to Catherine Wallace for her assistance in cataloguing this work.