Whispering Eve

Gilbert Foster 1855 - 1906

Summary

A softly painted woodland landscape, with thick ivy-covered trunk in foreground to left, which extends its gnarled branches outwards. The ground is covered with daffodils and other red spring flowers. Smaller trees are to the right, receding down the hillside into the background. There is a pale moon in the dark blue sky.

Display Label

Whispering Eve 1897 William Gilbert Foster 1855-1906 Oil on canvas Leafless trees and spring daffodils in the moonlight suggest a seasonal meditation on death and life. The evocative title emphasises the spiritual or haunted aspect of this English landscape, which is probably set on the North Yorkshire coast. Foster was born in Manchester, raised in Leeds and taught at Leeds School of Art. He bought a cottage at Runswick Bay in North Yorkshire in 1890, and painted there nearly every summer, joining the colony of Impressionist-influenced artists at nearby Staithes. Foster was a supportive and encouraging teacher, taking his Leeds students on sketching trips and helping them to sell their work. A former pupil of his gave the painting to the Gallery. Gift of Miss H A Walker 1916.7