Story: Perceptions of the landscape

‘The Bay of Islands’

‘The Bay of Islands’

John Hoyte, who painted this watercolour about 1873, has been described as a romantic realist. The shapes of the hills and trees are realistic, but the composition is contrived. This scene is framed by the trees and rocks, the distant hills soften into a shadowy blue, and a small picturesque house and lone worker have been added to create a scene of romantic beauty. This painterly approach affected the way people looked at the real landscape.

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Christchurch Art Gallery - Te Puna o Waiwhetu
Watercolour by John Barr Clarke Hoyte

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How to cite this page:

Jock Phillips, 'Perceptions of the landscape - A Romantic landscape', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/artwork/14396/the-bay-of-islands (accessed 19 March 2024)

Story by Jock Phillips, published 24 Sep 2007