In the early 1920s Charles Simpson was the leading figure in the St Ives art colony. After running a local art school with his wife, he moved to London in 1924, later returning to Cornwall where he continued to write and illustrate, producing books on photography and art. He was prolific in painting hunting and racing scenes and carrying out commissions for horse-and rider portraits. By then living in Lamorna, Simpson returned to painting the coastline and his favourite subject – ducks on the stream or millpond.