Thomas Bush Hardy: In distress off Staithes, York, 1896

Thomas Bush Hardy: In distress off Staithes, York, 1896. This watercolour on paper is signed, inscribed and dated. It shows crowds of people on the steps and harbour walls of the coastal town of Staithes watching a fully crewed lifeboat pulling towards a stricken sailing ship. Waves throw spray up onto a jetty in the foreground while the towering white cliffs loom in the distance. The reverse has a paper label for Frost & Reed, Bristol and Clifton, Picture Frame Makers, Artists’ Colourmen & Print Sellers and Picture Dealers, established 1808. The original gilt frame is inscribed ‘In Distress – Off Staithes – Yorks T.B.H. – 1896’. English. 

There has been an RNLI lifeboat stationed at either Staithes or Runswick since 1866, and for many years there was a lifeboat in both villages simultaneously until the decision was made in 1938 to rely on Runswick alone due to a lack of manpower. At the time of this painting, Staithes had a 34 foot self-righting boat called Jonathan Stott (1894-1904).

Thomas Bush Hardy (1842-1897) was born in Sheffield, Yorkshire. He was one of the most successful and prolific artists in an era when English marine painting in watercolour reached its zenith. Elected into the Royal Society of British Artists in 1884, he exhibited with them and also at the Royal Academy, predominantly showing coastal scenes in England, the Netherlands, the French Channel ports and the Venetian Lagoon.