Share

License imageDownload image

James Jacques Tissot , French, 1836-1902

Title

The Three Crows Inn, Gravesend

Datec.1873

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions

63 x 91 cm

Credit LinePurchased, 1943

Object numberNGI.1105

DescriptionIn 1871 Tissot fled to London from Paris on account of the Franco-Prussian War. In England he established a reputation as a painter of fashionable society. This early picture however, portrays a family about to emigrate from Gravesend, which was then a point of departure for ships heading to Australia and New Zealand.

As in many of Tissot’s paintings the exact meaning of the scene is left open to interpretation. The sombre colouring suits the melancholy subject-matter. Tissot was one of a number of artists including Monet, Whistler and Van Gogh who visited London in the 1870s and noted its distinctive 'temps gris' (grey weather).
Exhibition HistoryFrench 19th and 20th Century Paintings from the National Gallery of Ireland: Corot to Picasso, Daimaru Museum, Tokyo, 5 September - 17 September 1996; Daimaru Museum, Kyoto, 10 October - 22 October 1996; Kawaguchiko Museum of Art, Yamanashi, 26 October - 2 December 1996; Daimaru Museum, Umeda,Osaka, 22 January - 9 February 1997; Aomori Municpal Gallery of Art, Aomori, 2 April - 20 April 1997


Shades of Grey: Painting without Colour, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin, 22 June - 29 September 2013
Label TextTissot grew up in the port town of Nantes. Ships, docks, rivers, and boating parties feature prominently in his work. He moved to London from Paris in 1871. In England, he established himself as a painter of elegant genre scenes depicting fashionable society. This early picture, by contrast, portrays the Dickensian plight of an emigrating family. The scene is set in Gravesend, Kent, which was then a point of departure for ships bound to Australia and New Zealand. The sombre grey colouring reinforces the melancholy mood of the subject matter.