William Spreat (Jr., British, 1816-1897) Fisherman at a Waterfall

Spreat was born in the town of Penryn in Cornwall, England. During his time, he was known as an “accomplished draughtman and a fine painter in oil.” However, he is probably now best known as a lithographer and publisher of prints and stereographs of the scenery of the Devon and Cornwall areas. In 1842 Spreat had published Picturesque Sketches of the Churches of Devon drawn “from nature and on stone.” He had maintained lithographic studios in Exeter and, advertised that he made “plans of estates, drawings of properties for sale, railway and engineering plans, banker’s cheques, notes and drafts, book illustrations, show cards and all kinds of ornamental and coloured lithography.” In 1870 the Devon & Exeter Graphic Society praised his artwork and noted that Speat ‘was a painter before he was a lithographer, and was the first to publish photographs of Devonshire scenery.’ He was also a highly regarded photographer and was a member of the Royal Photographic Society and exhibited his photographs at the Great Exhibitions of 1851 and 1852. After two decades of publishing prints, Spreat returned to oil paintings circa 1970. This painting, “Fisherman at a Waterfall” is a fine example of one of his landscape paintings.