Tag Archives: Art

James Paul Andre’s Sketches

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James Paul Andre the Younger was a London based artist, active between the years 1823 and 1867. He painted landscapes of many English counties in oil. His work was exhibited at the Royal Academy, Suffolk Street Gallery and the British Institution. Among some of his listed works are views of Woodford Bridge, Loughton Church and Hainault Forest.

Below is a selection of images from an album of works by Andre in the museum’s collection.

The Windmill at Chigwell Row

Windmill at Chigwell RowThis Windmill stood about 270 yards south-east from the south side of Lambourne Road opposite the junction with Vicarage Lane. The first mill here was erected in about 1610. The mill was struck by lightning in 1842 and burned down.

The James-Paul André album of watercolours shows four views of the windmill, three of the mill and its immediate surrounding area, and a fourth from a distance, possibly painted from near the top of Manor Road at the junction of Hainault Road and Fencepiece Road.

Hainault Forest

Hainault Forest

For over six hundred years Hainault Forest was part of Waltham Forest. All this changed in 1851 when an Act of Parliament was passed for the disafforestation of Hainault Forest, and this led to the destruction of 100,000 oak, hornbeam and other trees. The cleared land was sold for farms. A little woodland remained to the north of the King’s Wood, mostly in Chigwell and Lambourne parishes. However, by 1900 the bulk of the remaining woodland was in the private ownership of the Lockwood family of Bishops Hall, at Lambourne. Edward North Buxton, who had played a key part in the fight to save Epping Forest in the 1870s, could see the need to secure the last remnants of Hainault Forest as an open space for the public. In 1902 he persuaded the London County Council to purchase 801 acres of land formerly Hainault Forest in Lambourne and Chigwell and Foxburrows Farm. The ‘new’ Hainault Forest which exists today was formally dedicated as a public open space in July 1906.

Snaresbrook

snaresbrook-early-moonlight

The Eagle Pond at Snaresbrook is an ancient pond that is shown on maps surveyed in 1773 (Chapman & André) and 1745 (Rocque). It was formed in the early eighteenth century by damming the valley of the ‘Snares Brook’ and was at that time called ‘Snares Pond’. It adjoins the Snaresbrook Road that runs west from the Eagle Hotel, once a coaching inn on the main Woodford Road from London to Newmarket until 1829.

The watercolour painted by James Paul André in 1839, shows the pond from the west end. In the distance can be seen the Eagle Inn. Today the east end of the pond is shrouded with trees but the Inn can still be seen directly opposite the end of the Snaresbrook Road. The Royal Infant Orphanage was yet to be built at the time the picture was painted.

‘Near Loughton’

Near LoughtonThe picture shows the head of a lane, descending into a valley, and in the distance a substantial mansion with a red-tiled roof. The most likely location from which André painted this picture is at Rolls Corner on the Chigwell to Abridge Road, looking down Chigwell Lane. The house in the picture may be the artist’s impression of Loughton Hall which had been burned down in 1836, and which was not replaced until 1876.

New Touring Exhibition – Mythical Creatures

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Mythical Creatures is a NEW regional touring exhibition produced by Epping Forest District Museum and co-curated by students from Epping Forest College. Mythical Creatures is funded by Arts Council England and Royal Opera House Bridge. This exhibition is free to hire for venues in the East of England.

Here are some photographs from the exhibition.

A Mermaid’s Tale by Aleksandra Blaziak
EFC Young Curators
Minotaur lamp by Stephanie jack
Merperson by Elly Foster
Medusa jellyfish by Jaymini Bragato
The Holy Lance by Maiyoor Joshi
Medusa by Kelly Leitao
Mythical Creature interactive created by Caitlin Taylor and Mia Green
Hydra by Liam Prestage
Fairy dress by Jasmin Mitchell
Maquette of Nidhoggr Dragon by Rickey Maguire
Performance of the “Centaur’s Rebellion” by Corey Layzell
Koi gyoryū by Naushin Chowdhury

Artwork of the Month – Octavius Dixie Deacon

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Octavius Dixie Deacon, a Loughton Artist



Goldings Hill, Loughton

Octavius Dixie Deacon was born at Bow in 1836. His father owned Samuel Deacon and Co., an advertising agency which Octavius described as the oldest in England, established in 1812.

We know very little of his early life; however, with the media contacts of the family business they must have been kept up to date with the latest events and the latest celebrities.  

Octavius Dixie Deacon married Louisa Anna Horncastle in 1868.  The young couple lived in Stoke Newington where their first child, Elgiva, was born, moving to Grove Street in South Hackney and then to Goldings Park Road (now Goldings Road), Loughton in 1874.  Their house was the first on the south side of the road and had a 200 ft long garden.  They lived there until 1888.


By 1888, the Deacon family had moved to the top of Upper Park Road.  Their new house, Kettering, had been largely designed by Octavius himself, although the project was managed by Edmond Egan, the Loughton based architect who designed the Lopping Hall.  This house was demolished in the 1980’s.

In 1998, Epping Forest District Museum acquired a collection of letters, books and sketchbooks connected with Octavius Dixie Deacon and some of his large family of nine children.

The drawings and pictures in this collection show life in a small rural village in Victorian times.  From examining Deacons’s sketches, one gets an image of a caring and loving family.  Octavius often recorded his children’s lives in his drawings and also produced sketches for their entertainment.

Octavius Deacon died on December 13, 1916.


Artwork of the Month – Lucien Pissarro

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Lucien Pissarro The Garden Epping oil on canvas 1893-1897

The Garden in Epping
Oil on Canvas
1893 – 1897

Lucien Pissarro was born in Paris in 1863, the son of Camille Pissarro and Julie Velay. Lucien was a skilled painter, engraver and lithographer. He was taught by his father, Camille, who was a celebrated Impressionist.

As an artist Lucien’s work combined elements of both the French and English traditions and he was a founder member of the Camden group of artists. His paintings record the landscape of Dorset, Westmoreland, Essex, Surrey and Sussex. Lucien’s works are reflected in a number of public collections including the Tate and the Ashmolean.

Lucien visited England in 1870 as a child, worked there briefly in 1883–4, and settled permanently in the country in 1890 (although he often made trips to France), becoming a British citizen in 1916.
Between 1893 and 1897 Lucien and his family lived at 44 Hemnall Street, Epping which he named ‘Ergany House’. This house still stands today and is marked with a blue plaque commemorating Lucien’s occupancy.
During his first stay in Epping between 1893 – 1895 Lucien produced some 23 oil paintings of Epping as well as a number of watercolours. These capture a variety of scenes in the vicinity of Hemnall Street and also studies of local landmarks such as Coopersale Hall.

He continued to paint right up until his death in 1944.

Festive Art in Epping Forest District Museum’s Collection

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In the spirit of the season we thought we would share some seasonal art work from the Museum’s collection with you.
As some of you might be aware the museum houses a great collection of art from a variety of important and renowned artists that have strong connections with the district.
Here is a little more information about them and some of their festive and season inspired art.

Walter Spradbery
Walter Spradbery was a renowned commercial artist, who lived in Buckhurst Hill. He was best known for his travel posters which were commissioned by London Transport and a number of rail companies which later became British Rail. His early work was influenced by William Morris and the New Art movement which can be seen in his exact attention to detail.

Walter Spradbery card designs
‘Winter’ by Walter Spradbery

Haydn Mackey
Haydn Mackey was also a commercial artist and a close friend of Spradbery. The museum’s collection house prints, drawings, watercolours and oil paintings by Mackey showing his great skill. He has an international reputation as a painter, illustrator and war artist.

Mackey lived in the Vicarage, Waltham Abbey for a while during the 1930’s.

Both Spradbery and Mackey served together in the Royal Army Medical Corps during the First World War and both had close links to Walthamstow School of Art & Buckhurst Hill Community association.

Calendar by Mackey showing Waltham Abbey Church and the Vicarage in winter
Mackey card proofs 1934-1935
Mackey family card interior 1936-1937

Octavius Dixie Deacon
Octavius Dixie Deacon was a publisher, businessman and artist who lived in Loughton for a large part of his life. His work shows rural village life in the Victorian period. The museum houses letters, books and sketchbooks connected to Deacon.

Deacon Christmas card design

Deacon Christmas card design