Henry La Thangue painted in the open air, choosing scenes showing rural workers. The woman and elderly man in this picture are cutting bracken with sickles, perhaps for fuel or animal bedding. The blunt-edged brushstrokes soften their outlines, allowing them to blend into their surroundings. The moulded oak leaves and acorns decorating the frame continue the autumn theme. Despite his surname, La Thangue was a British artist, and was associated with artists painting at Newlyn in Cornwall. Like them, he was strongly influenced by similar scenes painted a few years earlier by French Ruralist artists.

Object description
Type: Easel painting
Location: Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Material: Oil on canvas
Artist: Henry Herbert La Thangue RA (1859-1929)
Date: 1899

Image details
Date: 14 June 2019
Camera body: iPhone 7 Plus
Lens: Wide Camera 28mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 28mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/7s
ISO: 100
Licensing: Image of a North East Museums asset. This image cannot be licensed.