The fisher's hut

D.Y. Cameron was a successful painter and a very influential etcher. He studied at the Glasgow School of Art before joining life classes at the Royal Scottish Academy. His work was acclaimed in Edinburgh, London, Berlin and Munich. During the First World War, Cameron was appointed official war artist to the Canadian government and in 1933 was made the King's Painter in Scotland. Cameron was highly sought after by collectors until the Great Crash of 1929 brought a collapse in prices for prints in general. Despite his excellence as a printmaker, his work still remains underrated both in art historical and market terms.

Strong tonal contrasts characterise his prints and his stark and dramatic paintings, which are mainly landscapes and cityscapes. His prints often feature areas of great darkness, offset by highlights. Cameron’s etchings are notable for their use of drypoint, a skill that Cameron had mastered over his years of production. This is particularly evident in his studies of church interiors and Scottish landscapes, as here.

Fisher’s hut set on the river bank of Findhom, is a slight deviation from Cameron's other landscapes. His use of line in the drypoint appears more languid and loose than other works, which are often more structured in their line such as Appin Rocks (1913), also in Te Papa’s collection (1952-0003-113). In The fisher’s hut, the linework appears more expressive of a gentle movement on the river, and of the sun’s last rays in the sky, causing the rich shadows cast over the rock on the left of the work. The addition of the silhouetted fishermen and the sunset help to break the timeless illusion that many other works such as Appin Rocks possess.

Sources:

Arthur M. Hind, The Etchings of D.Y. Cameron (London; Halton and Truscott Smith, 1924)

National Galleries Scotland, https://www.nationalgalleries.org/art-and-artists/artists/sir-david-young-cameron

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Young_Cameron

Dr Mark Stocker   Curator, Historical International Art    December 2017