Kangchenjunga from Darjeeling

Edward Lear (1812 - 1888)

National Museum Cardiff

1875-1877

The work depicts Mount Kangchenjunga, one of the highest peaks in the Himalayas, and the picture is based on studies made around Daarjeeling in 1874. It was executed in Lear's studio following his return from India. The composition references traditional landscape conventions and the Sublime, and betrays the artist's delight in exotic detail. The V-shaped format of lush foothills opening to the vast snow-covered mountain conjures up the feelings of attraction and repulsion that Lear expressed in his diary. This work was acquired with assistance from the Wolfson Foundation.

• Medium: oil on canvas
• Dimensions: 117 x 178cm
• Art Fund Grant: £150000 ( Total: £300,000)
• ArtFunded in: 2006
• Vendor: Rhondda Cynon Taf Council

Provenance

Edward Lear; Henry Austin Bruce, 1st Lord Aberdare; Henry Campbell Bruce, 2nd Lord Aberdare; Mountain Ash Urban District Council, 1924; Rhondda Cynon Taf Council; Bonham's, 2005 (unsold).

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