Henry Scott Tuke

Famed for his depictions of sun, sea, and sailing during a late Victorian and Edwardian golden age, the British painter Henry Scott Tuke RA (1858gdash;1929) is an intriguing artistic anomaly. Moving between Cornish-based artist colonies and the London art scene, stylistically Tuke presents a fusion of progressive plein airisme, loose impressionistic handling, and a vivid palette, and yet he was fundamentally an academic painter of exhibition nudes. Though consistently successful throughout his lifetime, in the wake of two world wars Tuke squo;s depictions of bathing boys came to represent a seemingly outmoded epoch. This far-reaching study features new research from leading authorities on Victorian and Edwardian art. Essays tackle questions of wide-ranging artistic influences, experimental art practice, and a varied reception history. Tuketsquo;s repeated portrayal of adolescent male nudes provokes challenging questions about the depiction, exhibition, and reception of the bodyodash;especially the young bodypdash;both then and now.