Oil Painting Red Coat Huntsman With Hound Dogs Fernie Hunt C1957

 Large Postwar British Hunting Animal Portrait Oil Painting Red Coat Huntsman With Hound Dogs Fernie Hunt Leicestershire by John Theodore Kenney.

Impress your clients & guests with this hunting masterpiece to display in your home or office.

Title “Huntsman & Hounds Fernie Hunt Leicestershire” dated 1957 by John Theodore Kenney.

Subject beautiful portrait in side profile showing a large pack of dogs English Scent Hounds, who are all gathered around the red coat huntsman who is on his thoroughbred brown horse, he is blowing his golden trumpet, set in the beautiful green rolling hills countryside view of Leicestershire in the known Fernie Hunt. Above with mainly dark stormy sky with small spots of blue shining through. 

A great example of the animal breeds.

Oil on canvas board.

An excellent display size with the frame being 68 cm high and 89 cm wide.

Signed lower corner by the known British artist John Theodore Kenney.

In our opinion this is among his finest works.

Set in a traditional decorative moulded frame which enhances this painting further.

Circa mid 20th century dated 1957.

John Theodore Eardley Kenney (1911–1972) a known British artist & illustrator who also worked on several of Reverend Wilbert Awdry’s The Railway Series books between 1957 to 1962. He was born before WW1 in 1911. Kenney began his art studies at the Leicester College of Art, the same school that produced Clarence Reginald Dalby, the first illustrator of the Railway Series. Upon graduation he was employed by J.E. Slater, a firm of commercial artists based in Leicester. Kenney joined the army & served with the 44th Searchlight Regiment also 121st Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment during World War 11. He landed in Normandy on D-Day. He was not officially a war artist though he did record scenes he witnessed in a number of impromptu drawings. He continued to draw what he saw as his regiment swept across Europe with the rest of the Allied contingent. After the war, he returned to Leicester, resuming his work at J.E. Slater. During this time he met his future wife, Peggy. In 1957 Kenney quit his position, choosing to pursue his dream & work as a full-time freelance artist. As a full-time artist, Kenney became mentor to Neil Cawthorne.Neil is a well known equestrian artist, painting official pictures for the Grand National steeple chase, and the Prince of Wales, playing polo. Neil started the Society of Equestrian Artists.

Awdry's choice of Kenney as a replacement for Dalby has been considered a fortuitous one. Kenney brought a lightness of touch and a naturalism to the illustrations that had been previously lacking. In the first book illustrated by Kenney, The Eight Famous Engines, Kenney's superb draftsmanship and his attention to detail are already obvious. Kenney's last illustrations in the Railway Series were for 1962's Gallant Old Engine. By that time his eyesight was failing and he was unable to handle the fine details required for the series' illustrations. He was replaced by Peter and Gunvor Edwards as illustrator for the Railway Series. Before his retirement, Kenney also illustrated 31 children's books for the Leicester publisher Ladybird Books, including a series on important British historical figures, like Charles Dickens, Florence Nightingale, also Queen Elizabeth 1, as well as a 1956 book of motor vehicle characters that has an affinity with the Awdry books he was soon to work on. He also provided art for the Hunter Hawk, Skyway Detective series. The artist John T. Kenney died in 1972 at the age of 61. His works have been exhibited at galleries & auction houses around the world. The highest sold price was $10,710 US dollars which was for the painting the Steeplechase. 

The Fernie hunt was originally founded in 1853, when Sir Richard Sutton, finding the Quorn country too large encouraged his son Richard to hunt an independent pack in South Leicestershire. When Sir Richard died in 1856 his son retired and the offer of local squire William Tailby to hunt the country on an independent basis was gratefully accepted by farmers and landowners. For a  time, he was also able to hunt much of the present Cottesmore country, west  of Oakham. The Fernie is the only one of the five Leicestershire hunts to be contained entirely within the county and can trace its history back to 1853 when the Billesdon County was separated from the rest of the Quorn hunt. When Sir Richard died in 1856 his son retired and the offer of local squire William Tailby to hunt the country on an independent basis was gratefully accepted by farmers and landowners. For a time, he was also able to hunt much of the present Cottesmore country, west of Oakham.

Provenance labels verso New Gadsby Gallery, Gadsbys & in collection of Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD.

Sources “Thomas the Tank Engine illustrator” BBC 13th June 2019 Archived from the original on 4th July 2019. Retrieved 8th July 2019. Ferniehunt/history.

Highly sought after due to the collectible hunting nature of animal subject matter such elaborate detail. 

With hanging thread on the back ready for immediate home wall display. 

Condition report. 

Offered in fine used condition. 

Front painting surface in good overall order. Having some scuffs, foxing stains, craquelure & minor paint loss topwards the oiter edges in places. Set in the original frame which has general wear, scuffs, cracking, some chips losses commensurate with usage & age. 

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