G V Burwood Art

The Museum is fortunate in possessing a number of splendid water colour and oil paintings by G V Burwood 1845-1917, a very versatile local man. A cooper (barrel maker) by trade, he developed a flourishing model making business with a number of patrons of distinction that included the Princess Victoria and the Duke of Cambridge.

His paintings, mainly of marine subjects, are all signed and are in demand by collectors. He lived at Linfield Cottage in Mariner's Score Lowestoft, where his studio overlooked the historic beach area. This photograph of him was taken from a framed 60th Anniversary greeting to Queen Victoria in 1897.

It was the year that the young Guglielmo Marconi demonstrated his 'wireless' invention across the Bristol Channel to Borne Holme Island, it was to revolutionise safety at sea, indeed almost everything else!

These two oil studies date from the turn of the 19th century and are end of year herring fishery scenes. A golden sunrise in the upper picture tells us we are looking east, smoke from the steamer in the background, the sails of the vessel on the left and the running sea in the foreground, all point to a north-easterly breeze. The Yarmouth registered drifter is nearing the end of a night shooting its drift nets, we can see a man in the bows holding a line to the dan on the end of the nets; cork floats trace just enough headline to tell us they must be hauling the last net. Notice only the mizzen sail is set holding the vessel beam onto the swell so they can heave on the net when the vessel rolls towards it, less work and quicker!

A grey dawn in the lower picture greets the Lowestoft registered sailing smack, its foresails and headsail slack with mainsails lashed to keep head to wind while the net is hauled; seabirds in abundance of course. These are just two examples of Burwood's pictures, why not visit the museum and see them all?