The Shipyard at Hessle Cliffs
A Newcastle artist who later moved to London and then Scarborough, Carmichael was not part of the Hull school. After a short spell at sea, he was apprenticed as a shipbuilder before becoming a serious painter. As well as marines, he painted topographical scenes and elements of both these styles are combined in his work: ââ¦no living painter more happily combines portraiture (in shipping) with the picturesque.â Art Journal, 1849. The shipyard depicted was at one time owned by the wealthy merchant family, the Blaydes. By 1822 it was closed down and later landscaped over. This painting was probably worked up from sketches made on-the-spot. One of the vessels shown is the Humber Ferry, a service that ran between Hull and Barton. On the far right is a boat ready for launching.
