Framed Oil Painting on canvas – Joseph THORS (1843-1907) – “The Path Between the Villages”

A good 19th century gilt-framed Oil Painting on canvas by Joseph THORS. RA (1843-1907) entitled “The Path Between the Villages”.

The painting depicts a country lane disappearing into the middle-distance with two ponies, one being ridden, walking away from a nearby thatched house towards a house in the middle distance, possibly the next village hence the title. A dead tree (almost a trade mark of Joseph Thors) stands proud to the right of the painting.

Signed bottom centre by the artist. Dated: c.1860-70

Condition: Frame and canvas in excellent condition. Some might say it is quite a dark painting and could benefit from a clean, however the colours are bright and there is no visible cracking.

Dimensions: (Visible canvas) h: 22ins x 19ins (56 x 48cm)    Frame: 29ins x 25ins (74 x 63.5cm)

Joseph THORS (fl: 1863-1900) – A well known landscape painter who lived in London but also worked in the midlands where he was regarded as a member of the Birmingham School. His landscapes are usually rustic scenes with cottages, figures and animals, and often feature a dead tree trunk, painted in a style which derives ultimately from the Norwich school. He exhibited extensively in Birmingham between 1869-1900; the Suffolk Street ‘Society of British Artists’; the British Institution and the Royal Academy between 1863-78.

Ref: p.473 of The Dictionary of Victorian Artists (2nd edition) by Christopher Wood. There is also a photograph of a painting by the same artist at the back.