Thomas Bond Walker, The Pump, Groomsport

Thomas Bond Walker (1861 - 1933) was a northern Irish painter who regularly exhbited with the Belfast Art Society. A widower, he augmented his income as a private tutor. One of his pupils was the young Paul Henry, who later said of Walker that he 'changed the whole course' of his life by introducing him to oil paints. This painting is wonderfully peaceful. It depicts a water pump, some simple rural buildings, the sky, a wooden boat, the sea and some trees, in the seaside village of Groomsport, Co Down. It's a quiet moment in day-to-day life from another era. The absence of people or animals give it a certain serenity - it's a moment of the day where there's nobody about, when the water pump - normally much in demand - is on its own. Oil on canvas, 41 x 51cm.