Flood in the Highlands

Artist Sir Edwin Landseer (London, England, 1802 - 1873)

Date1840s - 1860

Mediumoil on canvas

ClassificationsPaintings And Drawings

DimensionsOverall: Height: 177.8 cm, Width: 312.7 cm
Frame: Height: 204 cm, Width: 340 cm, Depth: 17 cm

AcquisitionPresented in 1947 by Sir James Caird.

CopyrightOut of copyright - CC0

LocationOn Display - Gallery 09

Object numberABDAG002312

Keywords

About MeSir Edwin Landseer was one of the most popular of romantic painters working in Britain during the first half of the nineteenth century. He took a cottage deep in the Highlands in Glenfeshie and when Queen Victoria and Prince Albert leased Balmoral as a royal residence, Landseer became a frequent visitor, instructing the young Queen in drawing and etching. Landseer's paintings told stories, bore moral messages, contained pathos and homely sentiment.

This painting was inspired by a real incident, a sudden flash flood that devastated the valleys at the foot of the Cairngorms and Monadhliath mountains on 3-4 August 1829. Landseer has piled incident upon incident in a pyramidal arrangement in order to convey the mounting terror and confusion of the villagers as the water rises beneath them. The painting has been described as a Highland version of Noah's ark.
In April 1849 Queen Victoria recorded in her diary a visit to Landseer's London studio and described this painting of a Highland Flood. It was begun in the 1840s but was extensively reworked over the years and was not exhibited until 1860 .
Adopted by Molly Massie

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This depicts a real event - a sudden flash flood that devastated the valleys at the foot of the Cairngorms and Monadhliath mountains on 3-4 August 1829.

Exhibitions

Gallery 09 - Balmoral Phenomenon