Part 3: Zachariah Boreman
Today Part 3 of my series about great porcelain painters: the famous landscape painter Zachariah Boreman. And, as always, I have a few pieces in stock if you would like to own one of his works.
Zachariah Boreman was born in London in 1738, and it is likely that he was apprenticed at the Chelsea factory as a young lad. For many years he was only allowed to paint crests, rims and roundels, but at some point he must have started to paint landscapes, and his extraordinary talent quickly became evident.
Boreman developed a very distinguished style of landscape painting: with very fine brush strokes he would often paint miniscule landscapes that, in despite their tiny size, would make you feel like you are in the sweeping expanse of nature. His colours were often a restrained deep green or brown, and he liked painting in monochrome sepia. For Boreman, less was more; even his monochrome landscapes often sizzle with life and emotion, usually with some tiny people engaged in fishing, hiking, fussing over horses or just having a chat by the waterside.
Boreman was known as a likable man who was highly respected for his landscapes, as well as his kind character. When the Chelsea factory was bought by Derby, Boreman moved to Derby in 1784 with many other painters such as Richard Askew, who painted the other side of the vase you can see above. Boreman would keep painting for Derby for many years, but gradually grew frustrated with the management, who would use him for their most expensive pieces but never increased his wages. After several disputes about this, Boreman finally left Derby in 1794 to return to London, where he worked for the Simms decorating studio in Pimlico until his death in 1810.
Recently I was lucky enough to purchase two very special pieces painted by Boreman; these pieces are very desired and hard to obtain. The first is a stunning vase with cover made in the Chelsea-Derby period, around the time of Boreman's moving to Derby. It has a beautiful landscape painting by Boreman on one side, and a muse called History by Richard Askew on the other side. The other piece is a little coffee cup and saucer, painted with sepia landscapes. And I also have a little orphaned coffee cup with a sweeping mountain landscape and some hikers in full colour.
And oh, did I mention the adorable little detail on the stunning vase...? During production someone pressed their thumb into the ridge that runs around the belly of the vase, leaving a big dent. The makers decided to ignore this dent, and simply gilded it over... these little accidents happen to the best of us!
Owning a piece of Boreman is a privilege; as this 18th Century Derby porcelain is so fine, there aren't that many pieces left, and collectors tend to hold onto them for many decades, so they don't come up in the market that often. I love looking at these pieces, as the tiny paintings always make me feel like I am on a hike in the big vast mountains!
Where to find things
You can find all items painted by Boreman here, and you can find all my available stock here. If you always want to see the latest additions, follow me on Instagram... I post pictures and a story several times a week.
Happy weekend, and take a walk in one of Zachariah's sweeping landscapes! ⛰⛵️🌳
This week's new treasures:
Comments