Mending Cowls, Cookham

Stanley Spencer was able to effortlessly bring out the Neo-Romanticism technique in his major piece, Mending Cowls, Cookham. Keen art lovers attribute this unique touch to a London school from which he graduated as an expert in Fine Art.

Mending Cowls, Cookham made its way to the spotlight immediately after it had been designed by Spencer. In Neo-Romanticism, an artist is seen to possess the ability to give a piece of art intimacy and serenity, enabling viewers to see and feel the spirituality that is embodied in the painting. Just with oil and canvas, Spencer gives Mending Cowls, Cookham a finish that speaks more for itself than one can say about it. Cookham was Spencer's hometown. It served as the primary setting where most of his artworks came to be. Basically, it is the major source where it’s believed he got his inspiration from. Being a small town with a religious pedestal to incline to, calmness and serenity surrounded the place and his art as well.

Mending Cowls, Cookham is Spencer’s way of according the spiritual nature of the town in anything and everything. He grew up in a place encircled by religious presence, and this can be seen in more than a dozen of his pieces. The cowls that are visible in the painting are made of wood. They have been designed to rotate whenever wind blows. This in turn helps in providing aeration to a specific oast house on which it’s been mounted. The setting of Mending Cowls, Cookham is on such an oast house. To make hops ready for use, they are dried in the house. Proper ventilation will help the process, ensuring nothing happens to the crop's detriment.

In Mending Cowls, it seems that the cowl is broken or damaged. Three men have made their way to the top to handle the situation. Two are dressed in white shirts, while one is clad in green. The cone-shaped housing has been detached. One hollow half is being held by one of the repairers as the other is being worked on by the two builders. Each of the builders seems to be slow but calm and careful. Their workmanship seems to be professional. The view of the process is from a window on the adjacent side of the oast house, probably where Spencer got his from. Apart from Mending Cowls, Cookham, Stanley Spencer accomplished other famous works, including Christ Carrying the Cross, Zacharias and Elizabeth, The Resurrection of the Soldiers, and The Bridge.