The Meet, Berkeley Hunt – Victorian Sporting Oil by Charles Faulkner

Victorian Sporting Painting – The Meet (The Berkeley Hunt) c.1880
By Charles Faulkner 🐎

(This piece is 1 of a 4-painting hunting series. The remaining three works are available separately—please message us if you’d like to purchase the full set.)

Subject & Medium 🖼️

Painted in oil on board, this atmospheric work portrays The Meet—the formal assembly of huntsmen and hounds before the chase begins. Set in Berkeley Vale, Gloucestershire, the traditional home of the historic Berkeley Hunt, the scene captures the etiquette, composure, and anticipation that precede the day’s pursuit.
The rigid board surface allows Faulkner to achieve his characteristic clarity: crisp detailing, precise contours, and the controlled atmosphere that defines his sporting art.

Composition & Technique 🐴✨

Faulkner presents a poised, ceremonial moment. Riders in classic scarlet hunting coats gather in quiet formation—some conversing, others adjusting their tack. In the distance, a cluster of hounds stands alert, their pale coats catching the cool morning light. Winter hedgerows and bare trees in deep browns, muted umbers, and earthy greens evoke the late-season landscape of Berkeley Vale.

A broad, overcast sky stretches overhead, built with short textured strokes of grey and silver-blue. The interplay between the vivid scarlets and the subdued natural palette creates a balanced, authentic Victorian sporting harmony.

Faulkner’s brushwork is both disciplined and expressive:

• Fine detailing defines the horses’ anatomy and the riders’ attire

• Rhythmic strokes animate the clouded sky

• Layered highlights add sheen to coats, harness, and metalwork

• Quick, lively touches bring the hounds to life

• Soft scumbling and glazing unify the hedgerows and distance

The result is a richly atmospheric prelude to the hunt—calm, ceremonial, and unmistakably Victorian.

About the Artist – Charles Faulkner (Active c.1874–1900) 👨🎨📜

Charles Faulkner was a respected Victorian sporting painter known for spirited foxhunting scenes, equestrian subjects, and evocative portrayals of English rural tradition. His work is admired for:

• Accurate, sensitive depiction of horses and hounds

• Strong narrative rhythm

• Steady, atmospheric composition

• Faithful representation of 19th-century hunt customs

Faulkner’s paintings are now highly collectible examples of British sporting art.

Signature ✍️

Signed “C. Faulkner” lower right.

Framing 🖼️✨

Recently reframed in an elegant Larson-Juhl moulding and fitted with AR70 low-reflection, UV-protective museum glass. This premium glazing enhances clarity, reduces glare, preserves colour, and elevates the overall presentation to museum display standards.

Framed Dimensions:
41 cm (W) × 26.5 cm (H) × 4 cm (D)
A refined, versatile size ideal for studies, hallways, libraries, and curated gallery walls.

Provenance 🕰️

• Gloucestershire Art & Antiques Dealer

• Harriet Wynter, Interior Decorations & Antiques, Brighton

• Private Collection

• Curated by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD

• Exhibited at the Famous Lord Hill Museum, Shropshire (2025)

Why You’ll Love It ❤️

• Rare, evocative depiction of The Berkeley Hunt

• Superb Victorian equestrian narrative with character and detail

• Harmonious palette: warm scarlets balanced by cool greys and earthen tones

• Strong composition with authenticated Victorian brushwork

• Museum-exhibited with solid, reliable provenance

• Enhanced with premium Larson-Juhl framing + AR70 museum glazing

Condition Report ✅

Excellent condition for a work dating to c.1880:

• Fine, natural craquelure and minor foxing typical of Victorian oils

• Very small areas of paint loss in the green foreground, unobtrusive

• Clear, stable varnish

• Board remains flat, firm, and secure

• Frame and AR70 glass are in outstanding condition
  Overall: clean, stable, and ready to hang.