Artwork
Hollyberry Walk, N.W.3.
Hollyberry Walk, N.W.3. is a watercolor work on paper by the American Folk Art artist Frost. It dates from 1940 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Hollyberry Walk, N.
About this work
Overview
Hollyberry Walk, N.W.3. is a 1940 watercolour by Frost, created under the Recording Britain project, a wartime initiative to document the British landscape.
Subject & Meaning
The work depicts a serene, pre-war northwest London street scene, with closely set old brick houses, a bare tree, and a fenced yard, capturing a moment of traditional British urban landscape on the cusp of change.
Technique & Style
Frost employed loose, sketchy lines and muted colors, predominantly soft grays and browns, to convey the play of light and shadow in the quiet, everyday scene.
History & Provenance
Commissioned as part of the Recording Britain project led by Sir Kenneth Clark, this piece is one of over 1,500 works by 97 artists, aiming to preserve national identity and support artists during WWII.
Context
The project's broader goals included addressing fears of losing traditional British landscapes to war and modernization, making Hollyberry Walk, N.W.3. a document of a bygone era.
Artist & collection
Artist
Frost is a layer of ice on a solid surface, which forms from water vapor that deposits onto a freezing surface.
Houses on the Green, Kew
Admiral's House, Hampstead
Victoria Square S.W.1.
Houses in Marlborough Hill, St. John's Wood
Buckingham Place, Westminster
The Paragon, Clifton
Smith Square, Westminster
Albion Place, Reading
Regency Brighton; houses on Marine Parade and Sussex Square
93 to 97 Park Lane, W.1.
Lyall Street, Eaton Square
Carlton Terrace