20 Works, Today, May 6th. is artist John Charles Dollman's day, his story, illustrated with footnotes #125

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

The Ride of the Valkyries, c. 1908

Oil on canvas

111.8 x 182.9cm

Art Gallery of Western Australia

In Norse mythology, a valkyrie (from Old Norse valkyrja "chooser of the slain") is one of a host of female figures who choose those who may die in battle and those who may live. Selecting among half of those who die in battle, the valkyries bring their chosen to the afterlife hall of the slain, Valhalla, ruled over by the god Odin. There, the deceased warriors become einherjar. When the einherjar are not preparing for the events of Ragnarök, the valkyries bear them mead. Valkyries also appear as lovers of heroes and other mortals, where they are sometimes described as the daughters of royalty, sometimes accompanied by ravens and sometimes connected to swans or horses. More on the Valkyrie

John Charles Dollman RWS RI ROI (6 May 1851 – 11 December 1934) was an English painter and illustrator.

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

Thirty Pieces of Silver

Oil on canvas

H 76.8 x W 127 cm

Brighton and Hove Museums and Art Galleries

Thirty pieces of silver was the price for which Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus, according to an account in the Gospel of Matthew 26:15 in the New Testament.[1] Before the Last Supper, Judas is said to have gone to the chief priests and agreed to hand over Jesus in exchange for 30 silver coins, and to have attempted to return the money afterwards, filled with remorse. More on Thirty pieces of silver

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

The Temptation Of Saint Anthony

Oil on canvas

111.8 x 174 cms | 44 x 68 1/2 ins

Art Gallery of New South Wales

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

The Temptation of Saint Anthony, c. 1897

Oil on canvas

I have no further description, at this time

The Temptation of Saint Anthony is an often-repeated subject in history of art and literature, concerning the supernatural temptation reportedly faced by Saint Anthony the Great during his sojourn in the Egyptian desert. Anthony's temptation is first discussed by Athanasius of Alexandria, Anthony's contemporary, and from then became a popular theme in Western culture. More on Temptation of Saint Anthony

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

Friends in Adversity, Christmas Day at the Dreadnought Hospital, Greenwich (Coming Down to Dinner), c. 1880

Oil on canvas

H 254 x W 193 cm

Nottingham City Museums & Galleries

On the right of the picture is a group of figures descending a staircase. Nearing the bottom, in the foreground, is a young Turk or Arab. He grasps the stair-rail with his right hand, and looks at the old sailor on his left, whom he is supporting. The old man, in his lapel he has a sprig of holly. He holds his walking stick in his left hand. Behind this group is a young man in a sailor's blue shirt and collar. His right arm is in a sling, and he tweaks the ear of a boy who offers him a sprig of mistletoe. The youngster, under his left arm he holds a violin and bow. Behind these two are a Chinese man and a Negro with a patch over his right eye. Further up on the stairs is a Negro on crutches, a man with a ginger beard and blue bandage round his forehead, an elderly, bearded man and two other men. 

At the very top of the stairs is an archway decorated with holly, with the Union Jack hanging down. Above the arch is a long blue plaque trimmed with holly, which reads: 'After, so, many, Ship- Wrecks, we, find, a, Port!' To the left of this inscription is a picture of a sailing ship with the name 'Elizabeth' beneath it. Underneath it is a blue plaque with the cross, anchor and heart sign of 'Faith, Hope and Charity', also trimmed with holly. On the left of the picture, in the background, are several figures descending a stairwell above. There is a Chinese man, his hair plaited down his back, looking over at the main figures. A Union Jack is draped over the banisters. On the extreme left on the wall is half a coat of arms. It shows a sailor with one leg missing and a crutch, standing beside a shield with three legs on it with the motto, 'One leg is better than none'. More on this painting

Dollman was born in Hove on 6 May 1851 and moved to London to study at South Kensington and the Royal Academy Schools, after which he set up a studio at Bedford Park, London. He exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1870 to 1912, and was elected RWS (Member of the Royal Watercolour Society) in 1913. Dollman was also an illustrator, working in black and white or colour for magazines such as the Graphic during and after the 1880s. Some of his early work has been said to have influenced Van Gogh.

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

A Viking Foray

Oil on canvas

John Charles Dollman

Viking Ship Returning Home, c. 1908

Oil on panel

10 1/2" x 14 3/4" in 

Private collection

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

Study for 'The Unknown', c. 1912

Oil on canvas

H 45.5 x W 76.5 cm

Laing Art Gallery

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

'The Unknown', c. 1912

Illustration

Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Illustration shows a young woman, nude to the waist, kneeling with hand raised over a fire labeled "Equal Rights" among a cluster of chimpanzees with human faces; the chimpanzees appear to be afraid of the flames.

Expressing the attitude of the average politician toward the woman suffrage movement. More on this Illustration

A central theme was ambitious mythological pictures such as a Viking Foray (See above), a Viking horde entitled the Ravager, The Unknown (1912) (See above), featuring a girl surrounded by chimps. He also produced bold compositions of animals and people such as Mowgli made leader of the Bandar-log (1903) (See below). His best known work is possibly A London Cab Stand (1888) (See below), focussing on a group of horses in a stormy scene. He composed at least three variants of this picture, and there are other instances where he made copies or near-copies of individual pictures. In the 1890s he painted pictures of soldiers, and some less well regarded genre pictures of people with animals. He also painted wild animal pictures without attempting any narrative content.

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

Les miserables/ A London Cab Stand , c. 1888

Oil on canvas

H 98.5 x W 158 cm

Museum of London

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

Mowgli Made Leader of the Bandar-log, c. 1918

Oil on canvas

H 95.7 x W 128.3 cm

Shipley Art Gallery

Mowgli is a fictional character and the protagonist of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book stories. He is a feral boy from the Pench area in Seoni, Madhya Pradesh, India, who originally appeared in Kipling's short story "In the Rukh" and then became the most prominent and arguably the most memorable character in the collections The Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book (1894–1895), which also featured stories about other characters. More on Mowgli

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

Table d'Hote at a Dogs' Home, c. 1879

Oil on canvas

H 75 x W 129 cm

Walker Art Gallery

Dollman's works are in the collections of various galleries. The Immigrants' Ship (1884) is in the Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide. A version of The Unknown (See above) is in the Laing Art Gallery, Newcastle. His painting of Antarctic explorer Lawrence Oates as he walked to his death, A Very Gallant Gentleman (See below), hangs in the Cavalry Club in London. It was commissioned by officers of the Inniskilling Dragoons in 1913. It was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1914. A preparatory sketch was exhibited in the Scott Polar Research Institute, at the University of Cambridge (See above) is in the London Museum. A Dog's Home, Table d'Hote (1879) (See above) is in the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, while Famine (1904) (See below) is at the Salford Museum and Art Gallery. Ride of the Valkyries (See top) is located in the Art Gallery of Western Australia, Perth.

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

A Very Gallant Gentleman, c. 1913

Oil on canvas

H 75.5 x W 54.5 cm

Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge

John Charles Dollman

'A Very Gallant Gentleman' - Captain Lawrence Oates

Pen, ink and watercolour heightened with white

Works on Paper

59 x 99cm 

Private collection

Dollman captured a very poignant moment in history with his 1913 painting entitled  A Very Gallant Gentleman which depicts Captain Laurence “Titus” Oates walking out to his death in the blizzard, on Captain Scott’s return journey from the South Pole, in March 1912. Oates had been suffering from severe frostbite which became so severe that he could hardly climb into his sleeping bag and the “killer”, gangrene, had set in. Oates realised his physical condition was now hampering his three other colleagues’ safe return and he pleaded with them to leave him behind, but they refused. The next day he awoke, and knew what he must do.  He left his colleagues knowing that this may help them and uttered his immortal line:

“…I’m just going outside; I may be away some time…”

Captain Scott recorded in his diary that day that Oates had gone out into the blizzard never to be seen again. The final three members of the expedition party struggled on for a few more days before they too died before ever reaching safety. More on this painting

George Percy Jacomb-Hood

A Very Gallant Gentleman - Sketch for a proposed painting of an incident in the South Pole Exhibition

Oil on canvas

18ins x 23.5ins

Private collection

George Percy Jacomb-Hood

A Very Gallant Gentleman - Sketch for a proposed painting of an incident in the South Pole Exhibition

Oil on canvas

18ins x 23.5ins

Private collection

His painting of Antarctic explorer Lawrence Oates as he walked to his death, A Very Gallant Gentleman (See above), hangs in the Cavalry Club in London. It was commissioned by officers of the Inniskilling Dragoons in 1913. It was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1914. A preparatory sketch was exhibited in the Scott Polar Research Institute, at the University of Cambridge (See above). 

John Charles Dollman (British, 1851–1934)

The cruel land, c. 1900

Oil on Canvas

77 x 128 cm. (30.3 x 50.4 in.)

Private collection

John Charles Dollman, R.W.S. (1851-1934)

Abandoned: vultures in the desert

Pencil and watercolour heightened with white

13½ x 23½ in. (34.3 x 59.6 cm.)

Private collection

John Charles Dollman (1851–1934)

Famine, c. 1904

Oil on canvas

H 122 x W 213 cm

Salford Museum & Art Gallery

Some people read this haunting painting as a starvation of the human body, with its vision of a shrouded death surrounded by hungry wolves. The artist, however, intended it to portray a famine of human spirit, or death of the soul after its neglect. More on this painting

John Charles DOLLMAN

The Awakening of Titania, c. 1898

Medium oil on canvas

136.5 x 203cm

Art Gallery of Western Australia

Titania is a character in William Shakespeare's 1595–1596 play A Midsummer Night's Dream. In the play, she is the queen of the fairies. Due to Shakespeare's influence, later fiction has often used the name "Titania" for fairy queen characters. More on Titania

Dollman died in London on 11 December 1934, aged 83. He was the father of the noted zoologist and taxonomist Guy Dollman. More on John Charles Dollman

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