Sir George Clausen, R.A., R.W.S. (1852-1944)

Although now in his eighty-fifth year, Clausen continued to revisit his beloved 'Hillside', the small house on Duton Hill in Essex that he had purchased in 1917. He had given the property to his son, Hugh, but the overgrown garden with its wooden shed-studio remained his domain and on summer days when the deck chairs were out, he would sit sketching under the great chestnut trees. Beyond the hedge, on the right of the present picture, the little lane leads up the hill to the huge black barn at Great Easton and where once it resounded to the clump of plough-horses, now it echoed to the occasional motor car, or the animated conversation of hikers out for the day from north London suburbs. The peace however, was unbroken, and when a note of colour was required, a vase of anemones or sweet-scented stock would be fetched from the house. Painting only needed these things.
KMc.