Large pair of Orientalist watercolours by Augustus Osborne Lamplough

Large pair of Orientalist watercolours by Augustus Osborne Lamplough
English, Early 20th century
Paper: Height 64cm, width 96cm; Height 64cm, width 98cm
Frames: Height 116/117cm, width 147/149cm, depth 5cm
 
Executed by Augustus Osborne Lamplough A.R.A. (English, 1877–1930), one of the most admired painters of Egyptian and North African views in the early 20th century, this unusually large and decorative pair of Orientalist watercolours captures the glowing atmosphere of the Nile at sunrise. Lamplough, elected an Associate of the Royal Academy in 1920, began his career painting Venetian interiors but from around 1905 onwards focused almost exclusively on North African subjects. He mastered the depiction of dawn and dusk skies, using their rich tones to illuminate desert horizons, temple ruins, and calm stretches of river enlivened by scattered figures.
 
The present pair exemplifies his finest work. One depicts the Hypaethral Temple at Philae, the other a Nile view at Cairo. Both compositions capture the brilliance of the rising sun reflected in still water, enhanced by a refined palette of warm reds and golds softened by cool blues and greens.
 
Each watercolour is unusually large for the medium, signed lower left ‘A. Lamplough A.R.A.’ and housed in finely carved giltwood frames of a particularly good size, enhancing their decorative presence.
 
Elegant, decorative, and highly proficient in execution, this superb pair would make an exceptional addition to any collection of Orientalist art or British watercolours.
 
Provenance:
- With Mathaf Gallery Ltd., London, stock no's B93 & B94
 
Artist/Maker: Augustus Osborne Lamplough (English, 1877-1930)