H. G. Hine by Frederick Wedmore

Name: H. G. Hine
Author: Frederick Wedmore

H. G. Hine, the water-colourist and vice-president of the Royal Institute, has died at eighty-three, his death drawing little public notice despite his artistic importance. Critics had long praised his serene renderings of the Sussex Downs: turquoise or opal skies, grey gold turf, shepherds with their flocks, and wind-bent thorn-trees. Sturdy and sailorlike in person, unlike his refined work, he found his true path and genius only after fifty, excelling Copley Fielding in composition and surpassing him in colour, doing justice at last to the Downs where he was born.

By Frederick Wedmore · First published 1893 · Genre: Obituary, Art Criticism, Biographical Essay · 388 words

First lines

Strangely little notice, considering the artistic importance of the subject, has been taken of the death of H. G. Hine, the eminent artist in water-colours, vice-president of the Royal Institute, who died a fortnight ago, aged eighty-three years. The explanation, I fear, of the scanty comment his death has evoked, is to be sought in the fact that the mass of that public which concerns itself with Art at all, is occupied chiefly with such art as exhibits an easy piquancy of treatment or an obvious interest of subject. Hine's did neither; yet the best-equipped critics have long done justice to the steady perfection with which he dealt with those themes of serene weather upon ‘the billows of the Downs,' which -- superlatively though they were executed by him -- he, with a hankering sometimes after other compositions and other effects, declined to consider his speciality. Yet a speciality, of course, they were: those visions of turquoise or of opal sky, and of grey gold or of embrowned gold turf, with the long, restful sweeps and subtle curves, the luminous shadows, the points of light, with the shepherd and his flock on the ascending hillside, with the ancient thorn-tree bent by the winds of many an autumn.

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Genres

Obituary — The text is a memorial essay published upon H. G. Hine's death, formally commemorating his life, artistic achievements, and legacy as an eminent water-color artist and Royal Institute vice-president.
Art Criticism — The work extensively evaluates Hine's artistic technique, mastery of watercolor, compositional charm, and distinctive approach to depicting the Sussex Downs with specific analysis of his use of color, light, and shadow.
Biographical Essay — The piece traces Hine's life trajectory, including his late artistic awakening after age fifty, his artistic influences, and his development as a colourist compared to contemporaries like David Cox and Copley Fielding.
Literary Journalism — Published in The Academy periodical, the work combines journalistic reportage about a cultural figure's death with literary analysis and reflective commentary on artistic significance.

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H. G. Hine is listed on Textopian as an essay by Frederick Wedmore, dated 1893 CE.

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Work type: Essay
Author: Frederick Wedmore
Date: 1893 CE
Language: English
Genres: Obituary, Art Criticism, Biographical Essay, Literary Journalism, Arts and Culture Commentary
Length: 388 words
Structure: 1 section, 3 paragraphs
Reading fit: Difficult (College Level)

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