Apperley visited Europe extensively between 1905 and 1914. Italy was a popular subject matter for the watercolour landscapes which he sold at annual one-man exhibitions in London during this time. In 1914 he went to Spain and was so inspired by the landscape, he settled in Granada where he lived until the Spanish Civil War
(See Ed. J. Christian The Last Romantics, Barbican Art Gallery Exhibition Catalogue, London, 1989, p.139)