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Lot Essay
Charles Altamont Doyle, one of the most distinctive and appealing of British 'fantasy' artists, was the younger brother of Richard (Dickie) Doyle (1824-1883) and father of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930). He moved to Edinburgh in 1849 and became assistant to the Surveyor in the Scottish Office of Works, a career that he pursued for the next thirty years.
Charles's talent developed with the example of his brother before him. Fairies and the fantasy world feature strongly in his oeuvre but his witty observation of the social scene, as seen in the present watercolour, was another aspect of his work.
Charles's talent developed with the example of his brother before him. Fairies and the fantasy world feature strongly in his oeuvre but his witty observation of the social scene, as seen in the present watercolour, was another aspect of his work.