Artwork
Fishing from a Coracle, Carrog, Merionethshire
Fishing from a Coracle, Carrog, Merionethshire is a watercolor work on paper by Mildred E. Eldridge. It dates from 1942 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
Fishing from a Coracle, Carrog, Merionethshire is a 1942 watercolour by Mildred E. Eldridge, created as part of the 'Recording Britain' project.
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts two men fishing from a coracle on a river, capturing a traditional rural activity. The scene conveys a sense of serenity and continuity amidst wartime change.
Technique & Style
The watercolour features delicate pencil underdrawing and subtle washes, leaving much of the paper uncoloured. The coracles and figures are rendered with simple, expressive lines, while the background is softly suggested with faint hills and trees.
History & Provenance
The work was produced under the 'Recording Britain' scheme, led by Sir Kenneth Clark, which employed artists to document Britain's heritage and landscapes threatened by war or modernization.
Context
The painting reflects efforts to preserve a sense of national identity during World War II, by capturing rural traditions and landscapes at risk of change or loss.
Artist & collection
Artist
Mildred E. Eldridge painted the hills and barns of 1940s Wales in watercolours. She left us five small scenes of rural life, each titled by the place it shows: a stone barn in Llanrhaeadr, peat cutters near Cefn Coch,…
