Who painted Mid Harvest (field with combine harvester)?

Mid Harvest (field with combine harvester) was painted by Raymond Spurrier in 1950.

Where can I see Mid Harvest (field with combine harvester)?

Mid Harvest (field with combine harvester) is held by Victoria and Albert Museum.

What movement is Mid Harvest (field with combine harvester)?

Mid Harvest (field with combine harvester) is associated with Impressionism.

Artwork

Mid Harvest (field with combine harvester)

Raymond Spurrier , 1950

Mid Harvest (field with combine harvester) is a watercolor work on paper by the Impressionist artist Raymond Spurrier. It dates from 1950 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. The work is a watercolor that portrays a rural scene during harvest.

About this work

Overview

The work is a watercolor that portrays a rural scene during harvest. A broad yellow field dominates the middle ground, while a combine harvester operates toward the horizon. In the foreground, a dilapidated wooden fence tangled with rust‑colored wire lies on the ground. The sky is light‑toned with gentle clouds, and distant hills are rendered in smooth, simplified forms.

Subject & Meaning

The composition captures a moment of agricultural labor, emphasizing the contrast between the mechanized harvester and the aging fence that suggests the passage of time on the farm. The bright field conveys the abundance of the harvest season, while the weathered fence adds a note of realism and hints at the enduring relationship between land, labor, and the rural environment.

Technique & Style

Executed in watercolor, the artist employs clean, decisive lines and a limited palette of bold hues to flatten the landscape. The yellow field is rendered with uniform washes, while the sky and hills are suggested with soft, blended tones. The fence’s texture is achieved through fine brushwork that contrasts with the broader, more gestural treatment of the surrounding terrain.

Context

The painting reflects a mid‑20th‑century interest in depicting everyday rural life with a modernist sensibility, focusing on simplified forms and vivid color rather than detailed realism. By highlighting both the machinery of harvest and the remnants of older farm structures, the work situates itself within a broader artistic dialogue about the transformation of agricultural practices.

Artist & collection

Artist

Raymond Spurrier

British watercolorist Raymond Spurrier painted the pulse of everyday scenes in mid-century Britain—harvesters in golden fields, the still-weathered docks of Bristol after storms.