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Large in scale and boldly coloured, Cedric Morris’s views of St Helena are some of his most accomplished landscape works.

Morris travelled to the remote, volcanic island of St Helena in the winter of 1964 and remained there until February or March 1965. The island is over 1,000 miles off the west coast of Africa and is perhaps best known for hosting the exiled Napoléon Bonaparte (1769–1821) for the last six years of his life. Morris painted several canvasses whilst on the island, including this view of Longwood House, a former deputy governor’s residence where Napoleon lodged during his time there.

The house itself is situated in the Longwood district on St Helena and is surrounded by a number of notable geographical landmarks which Morris depicts clearly in this work. In the far distance on the right is Flagstaff peak, home of the native Wirebird, and adjacent to it on the far right is The Barn, a popular hiking destination. The rolling landscape is dotted with a species of evergreen fir tree native to St Helena.

Morris appears to have retained most of the landscape works painted on his trip to St Helena and only later, at an exhibition at the Upper Grosvenor Galleries in spring 1970, did he publicly exhibit them for the first time. Another work from this St Helena series titled ‘Coconut Gatherers’ is in the National Trust for Scotland collection at Haddo House, Aberdeenshire.