Half a Gale: outside Poole

In the 1880s and 1890s Moore was regarded as one of Britain's most original and important artists and his work was widely exhibited across Europe. He was the son of the artist William Moore, and the elder brother of Albert Joseph Moore (see lots 27, 136 and 137). Several of his siblings were also painters. According to Maclean, his biographer, he was a pioneer in his willingness to 'regard the sea, by itself and for itself, as a subject worthy of the artists's attention' (op. cit. p. 151). Most of his paintings are devoid of ships, but in the play of light on water, waves, and cloudscapes his works have an infinite variety for those with an observant eye. His pictures, like those of his brother's, are almost subjectless compostions with the prime concern being the effects of light and colour. In this he takes a more intellectual approach than his contemporaries James Clarke Hook, (see lot 202), and John Brett (lot 22).