Teatime at Haworth with the Brontës
The Mercer Art Gallery, Harrogate
This large painting, measuring 152.2cm (H) x 122.4cm (w), dazzles the viewer with colour. The title refers to the writing family, the Brontës, and an imagined shared meal. However, the scene itself has a more ethereal and unreal quality to it. It echoes the work of Symbolist painters from the early 20th century, conveying meaning through metaphor and dreamlike imagery, rather than through realism or attention to the natural world.
Sonia Lawson created a series of works, including this painting, inspired by the Brontës after a visit with her own family to the Parsonage in Haworth. However, rather than attempting to accurately portray the famous historic characters or setting of the parsonage, she has focused on the emotional connection that she felt with the Brontës. In this way, the work transforms how the viewer sees them.
Lawson explained that she was influenced to paint this work by childhood recollections of gatherings at her own home, where artists, writers and academics met with her parents, both artists, in their home in Castle Bolton, Wensleydale.
Exploring Lawson’s approach
The canvas has a strong sense of movement, shown through sweeping brushstrokes with an overriding feeling of confusion created by the anonymous faces and chaos of patterns. In some places, it is hard to differentiate between the people and the inanimate objects in the room. Lawson’s use of gold adds a richness to the scene, perhaps suggesting a feeling of being in the presence of greatness within the home of the Brontës. It was painted in 1981 in oil on canvas.
Click on the photo to enlarge it.
Lawson’s life and career
Born in 1934, Sonia Lawson studied at the Doncaster School of Art, followed by the Royal College of Art in London, during the 1950s. She was well-respected throughout her career, elected as a Royal Academician in 1982. Following a retrospective exhibition of her work at The Mercer Art Gallery in 2016, Lawson offered works to a number of public collections across Yorkshire. She died in 2023.
Activity coming soon – can we learn anything about the Brontës from this painting?
What emotions do you feel when you look at the painting?
How has Lawson captured her own excitement about the Brontës in this painting?
Why do you think Lawson decided to make the viewpoint so that we are gazing down on the teatime gathering, rather than level with it?
Look closely at the painting. What other details can you spot?
Do you think any elements of the painting could refer to the Brontë sisters’ writing? How?
What aspects of the painting are likely to be different from a real teatime at the Brontë home in Haworth?
Do you like the painting?
In 2009, Lawson was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Following a retrospective of her work in 2016, she offered her artworks to a number of public collections. Why do you think it was important to her that she donate her work to public galleries?
Vocabulary
Symbolism: this movement took place in the late 19th and early 20th century, in a move away from representations of nature. Symbolist art often focuses on dreams, visions, myths and stories, capturing a different sort of ‘truth’, based on emotions.
Take it Further
Think about
Is there a person or place that you feel a strong connection to that you’d like to paint? What emotions do you feel when you think about them? What might your painting include it if focused on emotions rather than on what the person and scene actually looks like?
Compare
Look at another painting by Sonia Lawson, from Scarborough Art Gallery. Can you spot any similarities?
Hands on History
There was a retrospective of the artwork of Sonia Lawson held at the Mercer Art Gallery in Harrogate in 2016. The gallery has a changing programme of exhibitions which are free to access. Find out more on their website.
