Noel Harry Leaver

Austwick, UK | 1889 – 1951 | Burnley, UK

Watercolourist Noel Harry Leaver, is best known for his illustrative and lyrical depictions of village streets, traditional buildings and their inhabitants. The alluring sensibility of such scenes, often set against a backdrop of a vivid blue sky, are rendered with warm colours and an inviting light and were largely inspired by Leaver’s travels to North Africa and throughout Europe.

19th CENTURY

Market Day

25 x 36 cm | Pencil and watercolour

After completing his studies at the St. James School and the Burnley School of Art, Leaver won a national scholarship to the Royal College of Art at age 16, graduating when he was 21. He also received a number of scholarships including one from the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) as well as the Owen Jones Studentship, allowing him to travel to Italy to study painting and architecture as well as to visit North Africa. Leaver taught at the Halifax School of Art (1912-1915) and the Burnley School of Art until the mid-1930s.

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