Sir George Clausen, R.A., R.W.S., R.I.

Sunrise relates to Clausen’s Royal Academy exhibit of 1924 Sunrise in September (Ferens Art Gallery, Hull) differing only in the absence of the horses and riders. The art critic for The Times described that picture as; 'perfectly realized, and realized in its emotional as well as its phenomenal value.' (8 May 1924, p. 16) and Lewis Hind thought it was 'one of the most charming pictures' painted by Clausen. Hind went on to congratulate Clausen on the brilliance of his light and simplicity of his vision; 'He leans to light, the chill of dawn, the glow of the hour of long shadows, as well as the dazzle of sunshine... It seems to me that Mr Clausen's paintings have a spiritual quality, yet the painting itself is direct and simple... his pictures have an air of spontaneity; they seem to show the effect rather than the fact. All his later works, that is the pictures he produced this century, have, what shall i call it? - the mystical air, as if he is looking through the normal aspect of things and seeking the source of their transfiguration.' (Lewis Hind, Landscape Painting, 1924, pp. 194-5) The series of pictures that Clausen painted in the 1920s evoke comparison with the famous series by Monet but were also scenes that Clausen would have been very familiar with in the Essex countryside.

There are two pencil drawings for these two paintings in the collection of the Royal Academy, dated 4 and 7 September 1923.