George Cole – A Game Keeper & His Gun Dog

Oil on Canvas.

George Cole (1810-1883) was an English painter best known for his landscapes and animal paintings. Born in Portsmouth, he was apprenticed to a ship’s painter at the Royal Dockyards. Once established in his own right, he focused on landscapes and hunting scenes, such as the one shown here. These were often rustic depictions, carefully observed and highly romanticised. Over the years, the artist’s work became increasingly well known, popular and critically acclaimed: Cole exhibited 16 works at the Royal Academy of Arts as well as 209 pictures the Society of British Artists, Suffolk Street, where he became auditor in 1856 and vice-president in 1867.

Hunting scenes like these are favoured by British decorators and are a staple of any English country house or traditional home.

Dimensions refer to framed size.