John Crome, the founder of the School, born in Norwich 
in 1768, died in his native City in 1821, is considered one 
of the greatest landscape painters in the world. Crome 
expressed his Norfolk by simple and direct means, breaking 
away from the classical tradition of former landscape 
painters. In oils Crome is represented in the collection 
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The Baggage Waggon.—/. S. Cotman . 
by “ Bruges River,” “ Back of the New Mills,” “ A View 
on the Wensum,” “ Yarmouth Jetty,” “ The Burdock,” 
and an early landscape painted in the style of Richard 
Wilson. With the exception of the latter, these and other 
Norwich School pictures in the galleries were a munificent 
bequest to the City by the late Mr. J. J. Colman, M.P. 
The second chief of the School, John Sell Cotman 
(1782-1842), less great in achievement than Crome, was 
even more original. His vision is peculiar to himself and 
it is unlike that of any of his predecessors or contemporaries. 
Only in our own time has he begun to receive his due of 
recognition. He was not only a very original designer 
and a born stylist, but a masterly draughtsman, and few have 
excelled him in the drawing of architecture. Cotman 
painted comparatively few pictures in oil and the Gallery 
is fortunate in possessing four outstanding examples of 
his work in this medium— cc The Baggage Waggon,” and 
“ The Mishap ” are known to all lovers of art. In cc Old 
Houses at Gorleston ” and cc Fishing Boats off Yarmouth ” 
are simple subjects treated in a broad and striking manner. 
In water-colour, monochrome and pencil, Cotman was a 
most prolific worker and there are fine examples in the 
collection, i.e., cc St. Luke’s Chapel, Norwich Cathedral,” 
and two classical compositions. With the generous help 
of the National Art-Collections Fund a collection of 106 
pencil drawings by this artist was acquired for the gallery 
in 1932. 
The other artists of the Norwich School include Crome’s 
son, John Berney Crome (1794-1842), Cotman’s Sons, Miles 
Edmund Cotman (1810-1858) and John Joseph Cotman 
(1814-1878), George Vincent (1796-1831 ?) and James 
Stark (1794-1859) whose work is all well illustrated in the 
gallery. 
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