Charles Pears – Artist and Sailor with Ties to Cornwall | NMMC
Charles Pears (1873-1958) was a marine painter and lithographer, born at Pontefract, Yorkshire. He worked initially as a black-and-white artist for magazines from the late 1890s, serving as a theatrical caricaturist for Pick-Me-Up. During World War I he was an Official War Artist for the Admiralty, a position he repeated during World War II, and he gradually established a reputation as a sound marine painter with a strong sense of design.
Ezra Pound, writing as B. H. Dias, had this to say about his work in 1919: “One R.M. is obviously worth two hundred and eighty s. Pears greets one in the corridor with excellent clean pastels (Note 305). In Room III we find his oil work, clean, conscientious, with a drive for veracity, the work of a man who has seen the sea; who has had his eye on the object; who has set out to put down various effects of sea and light which might be considered rather incredible. There is hard light on ; and veracity in 129, the best painting of ships I nave yet seen.” (Note 133.) He has thought about his work R.A. Thunderstorm, Harwich dazzle (“R.M.” appears to be an error for R. N.–Royal Navy. “R.A.” refers to the Royal Academy.
He exhibited widely, including the RA, ROI and Fine Art Society. He was founder and first president of the RSMA and his work found its way into the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, and the Imperial War Museum.
Charles Pears and his wife Dulce had moved to Polvarth Studio in St Mawes, previously a boathouse built by the Lancaster family in 1931. Both he and his wife had a lifelong interest in sailing and prior to the War had been living on their respective yachts on the Percuil River but with wartime regulations this became a problem and they were given permission to live in the building.
Charles was an established marine painter, illustrator and lithographer and an Official Naval War Artist in both World War I and World War II.
He wrote a number of books, such as *From the Thames to the Seine*, 1910, and *South Coast Cruising from the Thames to Penzance*, 1931.
Early Life and Education
Charles was born at Pontefract in 1873 where his father George owned a tailors and hatters shop. He studied near home at East Hardwick and Pomfret College.
Career Highlights
- Served as a theatrical caricaturist for Pick-Me-Up
- Became an Official War Artist for the Admiralty during both World Wars
- Founded and served as president of the Royal Society of Marine Artists (RSMA)
- His work was exhibited at prestigious galleries like the RA, ROI and Fine Art Society
Notable Paintings
- A sailing boat on open water Oil on board 40 x 50 cm Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum, Bournemouth, UK
- From Seven Scenes from a Fairytale Watercolour on paper 24 x 16 cm
- The Reluctant Beggar Oil on canvas-board 27 x 25 cm
- Yacht Regatta at Southend-on-Sea, Essex Colour lithograph poster 101.3 x 62.6 cm V&A Museum, London
- Charles Pears – Part 1 Watercolour 13.3 x 22 cm V&A Museum London
Influence and Legacy
Pears’s meticulous attention to detail and his commitment to capturing the essence of maritime life cemented his place as a leading figure in British marine art.
