Sleeping Nymphs Discovered by a Shepherd

Although born in Scotland, Fowler spent most of the first 50 years of his life in Liverpool where his studio attracted a circle of artists, writers and musicians. He exhibited regularly abroad and became especially popular in Germany. The pastoral mood of this painting is combined with a sensual, almost erotic, appeal. This combination was more usual in German rather than English paintings. The classical subject may also reflect the artist’s literary enthusiasms. Later in his career Fowler turned increasingly to painting landscapes.