COVE

Thunderstorm with The Death of Amelia, c.1784.

William Williams (1758-1797)

Caernarvonshire, Wales; Snowdown in the background

Available on the online Tate collection.

William Williams painted this piece during the Romantic period, highlighting themes of the sublime and love of the Romanticism era. Using oil paint on canvas Williams use vivid colours to represent life off in the distance and upon the couple’s clothing while choosing darker colours to bring to life a dark, violent storm. The couple painted are Celadon and Amelia, lovers from James Thomson’s poem: “The Seasons” illustrating the “Summer” excerpt. The painting depicts the death of Amelia by a lightning strike and Celadon holding his lover mourning over her death and his loss. The Welsh landscape Williams chooses to illustrate is set in Caernarvonshire, Wales, with Snowdon in the far background. The picturesque landscape is establishing a scenic background for Amelia and Celadon. Amelia and Celadon’s love is expressed through the couple’s entanglement with the picturesque beauty of nature. There is the dark element of the violent storm and the lightning strike that kills Amelia in contrast to the light element of the clear blue sky and green forest in the far distance. Williams’ expertise in painting landscape and scenery is illustrated in this piece bringing to life the Welsh landscape to create a sublime picture. 

Keywords: Welsh landscape, Sublime, Picturesque, Love, Romanticism, Paintings