Page 9 - Hindsight Issue 26 April 2020

KetteRIng
Thomas Cooper Gotch (1854–1931)
was born into a wealthy Kettering family, had art training at Heatherley’s and then entered the slade where he became a close friend of the painter Henry scott tuke. At the instigation of gotch’s future wife, fellow artist and slade student Caroline Burland Yates, gotch and tuke first visited newlyn, Cornwall, in 1879. tom and Carrie returned to marry in newlyn in 1881 and became resident in 1887 as part of the artists’ colony.
At first gotch adopted the newlyners’
rural realist style, but in 1891 they
wintered in Florence which marked
a change in the style of his work to
incorporate a joyous sense of colour.
Many of his later works are influenced by
the resurgence of interest in medievalism
and resemble Pre-Raphaelite paintings.
of these, probably his most famous
work is Alleluia painted in 1896 (tate Britain). He regularly returned to Kettering to participate in exhibitions and occasionally paint local scenes.
Sir Alfred East RA (1844–1913) was the youngest of 11 children. said to be able ‘to draw before he could talk’. He attended Kettering grammar school, entered the family business and eventually settled with the company in glasgow. He attended the glasgow school of Art in his late thirties, and then decided to follow an artistic career. Art school in Paris followed. Resettling with his family in London was hard at first, but then for the next 30 years he immortalized the rich landscape of Britain as it changed with the weather, the hour and the season. the Fine Art society commissioned him to paint the scenery of Japan and he made many visits to the UsA. After his countless sketching trips to europe he always returned to Kettering to visit friends and offer artistic advice and judge the local exhibitions.
Kettering & District Art Society (KDAS) was formed in 1905, with John Alfred gotch elected as President and W t Wright as Chairman. other founder members were W B gash, Harry Dorr and george Harrison, all practicing artists. John Alfred gotch, an older brother of t C gotch, had previously been very involved in the local encouragement of arts in the area. He remained President until his
‘Death the Bride’ by T C Gotch
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