Year 5 enjoyed a visit to the Watts Gallery in the nearby village of Compton today. The gallery is dedicated to the work of George Frederic Watts who was widely considered to be the greatest painter of the Victorian era. A portraitist, sculptor, landscape painter and symbolist, Watts’s work embodied the most pressing themes and ideas of the time, earning him the title England’s Michelangelo.
Mary Watts (née Fraser Tytler) (1849-1938) married G F Watts in 1886 beginning a strong artistic partnership. Mary Watts was a renowned designer in her own right, founder of the Compton Pottery (1900) and creator of Watts Chapel.
The children had the chance to compare the amazingly contrasting works of George Watts, focussing on his portraiture work in particular to tie in with last term’s ‘Portraiture’ topic. We then enjoyed a sculpture workshop where our artist, Jo, taught the children how to use portraits to create wire sculptures and followed this off with a tour of the Watts’ home and, fascinatingly, their artist studios. We would highly recommend a visit over half term, it is a super local Gallery.
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