Page 292 - Eye of the beholder

orlando norie (1832–1901)
Paintings depicting military themes and important military events were highly sought after in the 19th century Britain. Orlando Norie, together with artists like Richard Simkin, Mather Brown, Robert Home was one of the most well known and prolific painters of military subjects in 19th century Britain.
Norie’s ouvre is huge – upwards of about 5000 paintings,most of which are watercolors. Works by Norie are a part of important institutional collections like the British library, the Royal collection, the military, as well as numerous private collections worldwide. The paintings elicit memories of British imperial power and glory, and commemorate important events that were considered to be turning points in the national history. Orlando was born in Bruges, Belgium on 15 Jan 1832. He spent most of his life working in Dunkirk, England where he was employed by a publishing firm. While in the employment of the firm of Rudolf Ackermann, Norie churned out vivid watercolors that stuck an emotional chord with viewers, and appealed to their nationalistic sentiments.
In the 19th century, England was the leading power, engaged in military conflicts all over the world. There were military conflicts happening all over India, interventions with the French & the Russians, action in Africa and the Boer war in the Balkans. News of victories, defeats and incidents from the war slowly trickled into England and Norie turned them into brilliant emotionally charged watercolors.
The results were not always objective and accurate, but they served the immediate purpose. Topography was not accurate, neither was the vegetation or other pictorial elements This does not come as a surprise, because Norie had never for once left England.
I bought this painting in 2010 from a provincial English auction called Toovey’s. Painted in 1884, it most likely refers to the events of the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857. The sepoy mutiny remained alive in popular lore in englad long after it was over in India. In the years after the mutiny, many prominent British officers recounted their experiences in memoirs as published books. It is likely that this painting is a dramatized image of a certain episode from one such memoir.
This large format watercolor is quite deftly executed. The contours on the body of the horse, the action involving the mutineers in the background, the relative calm in the foreground with the dead soldier juxtapose themselves quite well. The viewers attention is only attracted to the action in the foreground, since there is no distraction from topological elements such as the sky or landscape.
I bought this painting in December 2010 – quite early on in my collecting career when my focus was on colonial Indian paintings. Prices for Norie’s pictures haven’t appreciated much, but have remained steady. Collectors of military history covet his pictures. However, very few of the new collectors in India are aware of Orlando Norie and his works. Which is a pity, because Orlando Norie is caretainly one of the foremost painters associated with an eventful period in modern Indian history.
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