About this artwork
This delicate watercolour shows Aberdeen's industrial harbour. The scene celebrates life on both the land and the sea: the chimney of a steam boat echoes that of the factory, and the cruciform masts resonate with the churches behind. Although natural effects dominate the atmosphere of this 'man made' landscape, it is poignant that the only clearly defined living creature is a sea-gull. Cassie's ability to capture the effects of hazy sunlight, with a pink glow that fills the sky, lends what was undoubtedly a gritty urban site an air of serene calm. Cassie applied numerous very light washes of watercolour to render the effects of the sunlight. He used pencil to outline details and more solid structures, such as the church spires, chimneys and ship masts that stretch towards the sky.
Updated before 2020
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artist:James Cassie (1819 - 1879) Scottish
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title:Aberdeen Harbour
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date created:1850
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materials:Watercolour, pencil and touches of bodycolour on paper
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measurements:13.80 x 25.00 cm
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object type:
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credit line:Miss L.J. Fraser Bequest 1936
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accession number:D 3904
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gallery:
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subject:
James Cassie
James Cassie
James Cassie was born at Keithhall near Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, the son of a prosperous tea and spirit merchant. Although briefly a pupil of the artist James Giles, Cassie was largely self-taught. He began his career as a painter of animals and portraits, but on moving to Aberdeen he increasingly...