John Northcote Nash - Early 20th Century Wood Engraving Orchids

Description

A fine woodcut by the artist John Northcote Nash (1893-1977). From Contemporary English Woodcuts, printed by the Baynard Press in 1922 in an edition of 550 copies. Numbered 318/550 below the mount. Well presented behind glass in a contemporary frame. On paper.

Condition

In fine condition.

Size

14 x 11cm (5.5" x 4.3")
Framed Size: 35.5 x 30.5cm (14.0" x 12.0")

Artist Biography

John Northcote Nash (1893-1977) was a British painter of landscapes and still lifes, wood engraver, and illustrator—particularly of botanical works—and the younger brother of the artist Paul Nash. Born in London, Nash showed an early passion for botany but was initially uncertain about his career path, working first as a newspaper reporter. He had no formal art training; he avoided it on the advice of his older brother Paul, who encouraged him to paint professionally. In 1913 he exhibited landscapes alongside his brother at the Dorien Leigh Galleries in London, and was invited to join the London Group and the Friday Club. Nash served in the First World War with the Artists Rifles from 1916 to 1918, and on his brother's recommendation was appointed an official war artist in 1918. He reprised this role in the Second World War, serving initially with the Observer Corps before moving to the Admiralty as an official war artist with the rank of Captain in the Royal Marines. He taught at the Ruskin School in Oxford from 1922 to 1927, and for two long periods before and after the Second World War at the Royal College of Art. After demobilisation in 1944, he settled in a country cottage near Colchester, where he developed his expertise as a plantsman and painted the East Anglian countryside. Nash was elected to the New English Art Club in 1921 and was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1964. He was elected a Royal Academician in 1951, and a major retrospective of his work was held at the RA in 1967. His paintings are held in many public collections, including the Tate and the Imperial War Museum. He died in Colchester on 23 September 1977.