Peggy Somerville was a child prodigy who learned to paint at the same time that she learned to talk. When she was three some of her watercolours were selected for an exhibition held by the Royal Society of Drawing. At the age of seven one of her paintings, 'Happy Days by the Sea', was exhibited at the New Irish Salon in Dublin, having been chosen on merit by judges who knew nothing of her age.

Her first one-woman 'retrospective' was held when she was nine at the Claridge Gallery in London. She was hailed as a child genius by newspapers throughout Britain and as far away as Boston, and, in a matter of days, each one of the hundred paintings on show had sold. Yet despite her fame she was a very private person and after studying at the Royal Academy Schools for just a few months she gave up formal study and became a Land Girl.

In her adult life Peggy continued to paint and, during the early 1960s, she moved to Middleton

Middleton, Suffolk

Middleton is a village in Suffolk, England. It is located approximately north-west of Leiston, north east of Saxmundham and from the Suffolk coast. The village is on the B1122 east of Yoxford and had a population of 359 at the 2001 census....

, near Westleton in Suffolk. From here she made frequent excursions to the coast nearby, particularly to her beloved Aldeburgh

Aldeburgh

Aldeburgh is a coastal town in Suffolk, East Anglia, England. Located on the River Alde, the town is notable for its Blue Flag shingle beach and fisherman huts where freshly caught fish are sold daily, and the Aldeburgh Yacht Club...

. An archetypal British Impressionist who made Suffolk her home, protecting and developing the fresh, unpretentious vision she had made her own, and was able to continue to paint the things she loved: sunlight, landscapes, flowers and her family.

While in many ways she can be seen as continuing the tradition from Gainsborough

Thomas Gainsborough

Thomas Gainsborough was an English portrait and landscape painter.-Suffolk:Thomas Gainsborough was born in Sudbury, Suffolk. He was the youngest son of John Gainsborough, a weaver and maker of woolen goods. At the age of thirteen he impressed his father with his penciling skills so that he let...

, through Constable

John Constable

John Constable was an English Romantic painter. Born in Suffolk, he is known principally for his landscape paintings of Dedham Vale, the area surrounding his home—now known as "Constable Country"—which he invested with an intensity of affection...

 and Churchyard

Churchyard

A churchyard is a patch of land adjoining or surrounding a church which is usually owned by the relevant church or local parish itself. In the Scots language or Northern English language this can also be known as a kirkyard or kirkyaird....

, to Wilson Steer

Philip Wilson Steer

Philip Wilson Steer OM was a British painter of landscape and occasional portraits and figure studies. He was a leading figure in the Impressionist movement in Britain.-Life and work:...

, she was also deeply indebted to the French Impressionists, especially Bonnard

Pierre Bonnard

Pierre Bonnard was a French painter and printmaker, as well as a founding member of Les Nabis.-Biography:...

. From 1964 until her early death she lived and worked in Suffolk painting vigorous oils, watercolours and pastels, her beautiful Aldeburgh paintings showing a rare sensuality and sensitivity.

After her early fame, her national reputation declined until she was rediscovered by the art historian Stephen Reiss during the period he was managing the Aldeburgh Festival

Aldeburgh Festival

The Aldeburgh Festival is an English arts festival devoted mainly to classical music. It takes place each June in the Aldeburgh area of Suffolk, centred on the main concert hall at Snape Maltings...

. Peggy Somerville is now recognised as one of the most interesting of the later British impressionists.

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