A Moment by the Fireside is a beautiful, sensitive example of the Edwin Harris’s consummate skill in capturing his subject in a moment of quiet contemplation, completely at ease in the artist’s presence. As Roger Langley comments in ‘Edwin Harris. An Introduction to His Life and Art', and in contrast to his friend and co-founder of the Newlyn School, Walter Langley, “In Newlyn Edwin Harris avoided the harshest realities of fishing life and chose more comfortable themes.” 

Such a work is A Moment by the Fireside but it is no less accomplished for its gentle theme and sensitivity. Harris’s characteristic square brush technique and exceptional painterly skill is much in evidence and the work is a fine example of the life painting that singles Harris out among his Newlyn peers. The palette of ochre and red is particularly pleasing and adds to the sense of warmth and calm. The model is likely to be the same red-haired young women that we see in Summer Afternoon and in both works we see her in contemplation, taking a moment’s break from her everyday activity. Harris was equally adept painting his subjects indoors and outdoors.

A Moment by the Fireside was exhibited at Penlee House Gallery in a retrospective of the artist’s work in 2008 and has a full-page illustration in Roger Langley’s book on the artist.