The Last of The Clan 1865 by Thomas Faed A.R.S.A., A.R.A., R.A. (1826 – 1900)
"Exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1865, this painting was accompanied in the catalogue by a paragraph probably written by the artist himself to explain the scene:
‘When the steamer had slowly backed out, and John MacAlpine had thrown off the hawser [rope], we began to feel that our once powerful clan was now represented by a feeble old man and his granddaughter, who, together with some outlying kith-and-kin, myself among the number, owned not a single blade of grass in the glen that was once all our own.’
This is one of several paintings by Thomas Faed dealing with the tragedy of the Highland Clearances and forced emigration to America, Canada and Australia, possibly prompted by the emigration of some of his own family members. From the late 18th to the middle of the 19th century, thousands of crofters were forcibly evicted from their homes to make way for lucrative sheep farming, the price of wool having rocketed. New settlements were formed in marginal land by the coast but crofters were unable to support themselves on poor plots with ever-increasing rents. Some found work in the new kelp industry, but this collapsed in 1820 after the Napoleonic wars, with new European competition, leading to another wave of clearances. Many starved, particularly after the 1846 potato famine. Emigration was often the only hope of survival, and in some cases were forced by brutal landowners.
This painting is larger in scale than the artist’s previous work, and unusually in this painting the artist focuses on the plight of those left behind, rather than on the departing emigrants, who would have been the strong, able-bodied men of the clan. There wouldn’t have been enough money for the whole family to go and the sea journey itself was something of an ordeal only to be endured by the strong, with unsanitary conditions, sickness and death. The artist powerfully puts the viewer in the position of one of those on the vessel, perhaps one of the ship hands or passengers witnessing the scene. We don’t seem to be one of the departing family members as the gazes of those on the quayside are directed to our left. It is a poignant moment, as John MacAlpine casts off the mooring rope and symbolically severs the link between those going and those left behind. In the centre of the picture is the broken figure of an old man, wrapped in a grey plaid, slumped on an equally dejected white pony. By his side is his granddaughter, head bent in weeping. The whole painting is a comment on and mourning for the passing of an entire way of life. The reality is that these abandoned figures faced destitution, having lost everything: their home and livelihood. Their entire belongings lie on the quayside.
This type of narrative painting, full of pathos and sentiment, reflecting on societal issues and human stories, was very popular in Victorian times, and attracted large audiences when they were exhibited. This painting was purchased from the artist by a Prussian-Jewish art dealer in London, Louis Victor Flatou, for 2,000 guineas, including copyright – the highest price one of Faed’s paintings had reached. Flatou made his money through commissioning engravings and bought many of Faed’s paintings for this purpose. Engravings meant that Faed’s work became known and celebrated internationally. In this instance Flatou commissioned a smaller version, now in the Fleming Collection in London, which is marked up for transfer to engraving. Glasgow Museums’ painting was purchased with the assistance of The Heritage Fund for Scotland, Art Fund, Pilgrim Trust, Glasgow Print Studio and public subscription in 1980. It is an important painting in the Scottish Identity gallery at Kelvingrove, where we think about who we are as a nation. The themes addressed in the painting – poverty, power, homelessness, refugees – are so relevant to us today. Purchased with the assistance of The Heritage Fund for Scotland, the National Art-Collections Fund, the Pilgrim Trust and Glasgow Print Studio and public subscription, 1980. Thomas Faed (1826 – 1900) Faed was a pupil of his brother John, and later studied at the School of Design in Edinburgh, under Sir W Allan and Thomas Duncan. In 1852 he settled in London and exhibited regularly at the RA. His work was almost entirely confined to the portrayal of the pathetic and sentimental sides of Scottish domestic life. His last picture, 'The Rustic Bathers', was exhibited at the RA in 1893. He retired in 1893, owing to partial failure of sight. He was elected ARSA 1849, ARA 1861, RA 1864. " Glasgow collections website.
The Last of The Clan 1865 by Thomas Faed A.R.S.A., A.R.A., R.A. (1826 – 1900)
"Exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1865, this painting was accompanied in the catalogue by a paragraph probably written by the artist himself to explain the scene:
‘When the steamer had slowly backed out, and John MacAlpine had thrown off the hawser [rope], we began to feel that our once powerful clan was now represented by a feeble old man and his granddaughter, who, together with some outlying kith-and-kin, myself among the number, owned not a single blade of grass in the glen that was once all our own.’
This is one of several paintings by Thomas Faed dealing with the tragedy of the Highland Clearances and forced emigration to America, Canada and Australia, possibly prompted by the emigration of some of his own family members. From the late 18th to the middle of the 19th century, thousands of crofters were forcibly evicted from their homes to make way for lucrative sheep farming, the price of wool having rocketed. New settlements were formed in marginal land by the coast but crofters were unable to support themselves on poor plots with ever-increasing rents. Some found work in the new kelp industry, but this collapsed in 1820 after the Napoleonic wars, with new European competition, leading to another wave of clearances. Many starved, particularly after the 1846 potato famine. Emigration was often the only hope of survival, and in some cases were forced by brutal landowners.
This painting is larger in scale than the artist’s previous work, and unusually in this painting the artist focuses on the plight of those left behind, rather than on the departing emigrants, who would have been the strong, able-bodied men of the clan. There wouldn’t have been enough money for the whole family to go and the sea journey itself was something of an ordeal only to be endured by the strong, with unsanitary conditions, sickness and death. The artist powerfully puts the viewer in the position of one of those on the vessel, perhaps one of the ship hands or passengers witnessing the scene. We don’t seem to be one of the departing family members as the gazes of those on the quayside are directed to our left. It is a poignant moment, as John MacAlpine casts off the mooring rope and symbolically severs the link between those going and those left behind. In the centre of the picture is the broken figure of an old man, wrapped in a grey plaid, slumped on an equally dejected white pony. By his side is his granddaughter, head bent in weeping. The whole painting is a comment on and mourning for the passing of an entire way of life. The reality is that these abandoned figures faced destitution, having lost everything: their home and livelihood. Their entire belongings lie on the quayside.
This type of narrative painting, full of pathos and sentiment, reflecting on societal issues and human stories, was very popular in Victorian times, and attracted large audiences when they were exhibited. This painting was purchased from the artist by a Prussian-Jewish art dealer in London, Louis Victor Flatou, for 2,000 guineas, including copyright – the highest price one of Faed’s paintings had reached. Flatou made his money through commissioning engravings and bought many of Faed’s paintings for this purpose. Engravings meant that Faed’s work became known and celebrated internationally. In this instance Flatou commissioned a smaller version, now in the Fleming Collection in London, which is marked up for transfer to engraving. Glasgow Museums’ painting was purchased with the assistance of The Heritage Fund for Scotland, Art Fund, Pilgrim Trust, Glasgow Print Studio and public subscription in 1980. It is an important painting in the Scottish Identity gallery at Kelvingrove, where we think about who we are as a nation. The themes addressed in the painting – poverty, power, homelessness, refugees – are so relevant to us today. Purchased with the assistance of The Heritage Fund for Scotland, the National Art-Collections Fund, the Pilgrim Trust and Glasgow Print Studio and public subscription, 1980. Thomas Faed (1826 – 1900) Faed was a pupil of his brother John, and later studied at the School of Design in Edinburgh, under Sir W Allan and Thomas Duncan. In 1852 he settled in London and exhibited regularly at the RA. His work was almost entirely confined to the portrayal of the pathetic and sentimental sides of Scottish domestic life. His last picture, 'The Rustic Bathers', was exhibited at the RA in 1893. He retired in 1893, owing to partial failure of sight. He was elected ARSA 1849, ARA 1861, RA 1864. " Glasgow collections website.