Farmyard in Cumberland, ca. 1974

Sheila Fell RA (1931 - 1979)

RA Collection: Art

Fell excelled at depicting the working landscapes of the Lake District. Born into a mining family in Aspatria, Cumberland, her knowledge of the region went far beyond picturesque views. Here a hill farm offers shelter beneath snow-filled clouds. She brilliantly evokes the brooding quality of the mountains and the windswept skies laden with snow.

Fell wrote: ‘I do not want to be thought of primarily as a landscape painter. I hope that the nearby community is implicit in my landscapes.’ Here, farmworkers and cattle are essential to the scene.

Fell studied at Carlisle School of Art and then at the St. Martin's School of Art. At the early age of 24 she was offered an exhibition at the Beaux Arts Gallery where her work was seen and bought by L. S. Lowry RA, who became a lifelong friend and supporter.

Much of her work was preoccupied with landscape of north Cumberland.