Artwork
St. Mary's Church, Tilty
St. Mary's Church, Tilty is a watercolor work on paper by Kenneth Rowntree. It dates from 1942 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. St.
About this work
Kenneth Rowntree painted it in 1942 as part of a project to record British buildings during the war.
This watercolour shows St. Mary's Church in Tilty. The building has an odd shape and fancy window carvings. Kenneth Rowntree painted it in 1942 as part of a project to record British buildings during the war.
The church started as the chapel of a Cistercian monastery in 1153. When Henry VIII shut down the monasteries, the chapel became a local parish church.
Check out more works by Rowntree, Kenneth.
Overview
St. Mary's Church, Tilty is a watercolour painting by Kenneth Rowntree, created in 1942 as part of the Recording Britain scheme.
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts St. Mary's Church, a parish church with a complex history. Originally the chapel of Tilty Abbey, a Cistercian monastery founded in 1153, it survived the dissolution of the monasteries and was repurposed for local worship.
Technique & Style
The watercolour captures the church's distinctive architecture, including its unusual shape and intricate window tracery.
History & Provenance
The work was produced during World War II as part of an effort to document Britain's cultural heritage.
Context
Tilty Abbey was dissolved under Henry VIII, but its chapel was preserved and continues to serve the local community as St. Mary's Church.
Artist & collection
Artist
Kenneth Rowntree painted quiet British places in watercolour around 1940, from barn-stacked Essex fields to the carved oak pews of Caernarvonshire chapels.
View of the Ruins of the Cloister, the Belfry of St. Mary's Church, and the Vicarage, Tilty
The Bellringer's Chamber, SS. Peter and Paul Church, Clare
Detail of Ceiling at Gwydir Uchar Chapel, Llanrwst, Caernarvonshire
Interior of SS Peter and Paul, Little Saling, Essex
Interior of the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Lindsell
House at Easingwold
The Smoke Room, Ashopton Inn
Pews in St Mary's Church, Whitby
East Bergholt Church and Bell Cage
East Bergholt Church: exterior view from the east
The Village Green, Westmill
Church and churchyard
East Bergholt Church: view from the east
St. Peter's Church, Theberton
The Tithe Barn, Cherhill
Church Farm (from the Churchyard) Sudbourne
St. Edmund's Church, Tendring, Nr. Harwich