The visionary landscapes of John Linnell and Samuel Palmer convey a higher reality by emphasising the religious significance of the scene. They depict God’s abundance in nature in familiar pastoral subjects such as fields of ripening corn, the harvest, ploughing, shepherds and their flocks.

Rather than depicting the harsh reality of contemporary rural life Palmer chooses to depict a romantic view of rural harmony much of which is inspired by literature. Palmer’s friendship with William Blake, the great Romantic poet and painter, was his most important artistic influence.

 

Palmer produced the most distinctive work of his career at Shoreham in Kent. He expressed his ecstatic response to nature through intense colour effects and decisive drawing which was original and hugely influential. Palmer’s visionary approach to landscape and unconventional techniques had a profound influence on British art. He inspired a number of Neo-Romantic painters and printmakers at the beginning of the 20th century including Paul Nash, Eric Ravilious, Graham Sutherland and John Piper among others.