1830s Landscape Drawings and Watercolors

This early 19th-century watercolour by British artist Paul Sandby Munn RWS (1773-1845) depicts a riverside view at Mallevy in North Wales. Amid a hasty world where technology consumes our waking hours, few of us find the time to consider the subtle beauties of quiet watercolours. Yet, during the late 18th century, when Munn began producing his skillfully-rendered views, this style of drawing was considered an act of rebellion. Indeed, to such an extent that, together with several associates, Munn contributed to one of the most vital artistic circles in British history - the “Brothers” sketching club. Held every Saturday, the sketching club sought to raise the status of landscape watercolours from their lowly position as mere copies of nature. Fellow artists such as John Varley, Thomas Girtin and John Sell Cotman...

Jules Coignet (1798-1860) Lago di Guarda, 1837, Inscribed "Lago di Guarda 9 8bre 1837" Graphite on paper 24 x 35 cm Framed : 37 x 48 cm Provenance : Galerie Paul Prouté, Autumn 1...

Louis-Alphonse DAVID (1798-1849) Le Moulin de la Butte aux Cailles, Paris, (The Mill at la Butte aux Cailles) signed lower left Pencil and white chalk on paper 22,5 x 36 cm Framed : 40,5 x 55 cm Louis-Alphonse David is known for a relatively small body of work, including portraits and large compositions. In any case, in this work he shows a remarkable mastery of drawing, with particularly suggestive and subtle plays of light and shadow. The Butte aux Cailles, now part of the 13th arrondissement of Paris, was a hill covered in meadows, vineyards and woods, built with several windmills and overlooking the river Bièvre. It was named after Pierre Caille...

"West Point from the East Bank of the Hudson" Antique Drawing on Paper Delicate and detailed drawing by Hartford, Connecticut artist Edward Watkins Wells (1819-1898) The viewer looks out past a gate at the Hudson River, with its characteristic mountain banks. A shepherd is driving a flock of sheep towards the gate and viewer. The scene appears to have been copied from a drawing book published in 1827, based on the inscription at the bottom edge. Presented in white archival mat Mat size: 12"H x 12"W Paper size: 7.5"H x 9.25"W Notes of interest on Edward Watkinson Wells Our most significant acquisition this year came from a dealer in Philadelphia. It is a 450-page diary written over 10 years (1841-1851) by Hartford artist and dilettante Edward Watkinson Wells (1819-1898), one of the many nephews of our founder, David Watkinson (1778-1857). Edward was immersed in Hartford’s cultural life in the 1840s, exhibited his works at local fairs and gave lessons to the locals. He portrays an active involvement with with his large extended family, which often crossed and re-crossed the other prominent families of Hartford (i.e., Barnard, Channing, Dexter, Ely, Gallaudet, Gill, Goodrich, Hudson, Rockwell, Silsbee, Tappan, Terry, Tracy, Trumbull, Van Renselaer, and Wadsworth). Edward describes dancing and costume parties, soirees, teas, dinners, and receptions in private homes and public venues. He meets Charles Dickens and his wife when they come through Hartford in 1842, and describes brushes with other luminaries, such as Col. Thomas L. McKenney (who lectures on American Indians), and the Unitarian clergyman Rev. Henry Giles, who gave a pro-Irish speech. Other entertainments included a balloon ascension, exhibitions of mesmerism and hypnotism, parades, and performances by well-known groups. He also chronicles the progression of the construction of the Wadsworth Atheneum, and touches on his father’s far-reaching interests in the business world–canals, railroads, factories, and real estate. The cost of this valuable document of mid-19thC Hartford was generously underwritten entirely by a member of the Watkinson Trustees. Trinity College and the Watkinson Virtual Library has content on Edward Watkinson Wells. Yale College also: Edward Watkinson Wells also kept a diary, of which three volumes are preserved (folder 32). He describes a trip by steamboat to Florida, ca. 1855-1860, and the social life and customs he observed there. The other two volumes detail his daily life in Hartford during 1856-1860, and record the deaths of his father and David Watkinson in 1857. Other items contained in the William Wells...

Louis-Alphonse DAVID (1798-1849) Le Moulin de la Butte aux Cailles, Paris, (The Mill at la Butte aux Cailles) signed lower left Pencil and white chalk on paper 22,5 x 36 cm Framed : 40,5 x 55 cm Louis-Alphonse David is known for a relatively small body of work, including portraits and large compositions. In any case, in this work he shows a remarkable mastery of drawing, with particularly suggestive and subtle plays of light and shadow. The Butte aux Cailles, now part of the 13th arrondissement of Paris, was a hill covered in meadows, vineyards and woods, built with several windmills and overlooking the river Bièvre. It was named after Pierre Caille...

Precious Watercolor attributed to James WARD (1769-1859) - England, 1830-1840. The Fisherman' S Family. Measurements : View : 20"x14.6" (51x37 cm), With frame : 26.6"x21.5" (67.5x54....

Watercolour with touches of bodycolour on buff paper, signed lower middle and inscribed and dated '1839' lower left Image size: 8 1/2 x 12 1/4 inches (22 x 31 cm) Acid free mount and period style gilt frame This original watercolour by Roberts depicts the temple at Baalbek with the ruined palace behind, seen from the opposite bank of a brook, where a group of figures are seated and kneeling around a table, with an arched bridge nearby. David Roberts was the first professional British artist to travel independently to the Middle East in 1838. He was the first British artist to draw the ruins of Ancient Egypt and Roberts produced a series of finished watercolours, including the painting, which he had worked up from sketches made during his tour. Like many British artists he used the familiar visual language of European landscapes to capture the unfamiliar scenery. By using architectural motifs to provide structure to compositions like this he is able to present a dramatic scene of classical grandeur, illuminated by sunlight complemented by a large area of shade in the foreground. The dramatic scene is enhanced by the three groups of figures, which convey the sense of scale. The figures also give the picture richer, darker and redder tones that contrast with the sandy colours of the architecture. This painting uses a lot of the essential ingredients that make up a picturesque scene: distant mountains, classical ruins and figures for human interest and to convey motion. Robert's Trip to Baalbek David Roberts visited Baalbek near the end of his travels around Egypt and the Middle East. Roberts and his party rode to the site of Baalbek on 2nd May in a heavy-rain storm. He was miserable, totally drenched and feverish. But the sight of the ancient Roman settlement rallied him. Despite his physical debilitation, 'I was... so much struck with the magnificence of the temple, that I could not resist visiting and examining it'. The storm then continued through the night, pummelling the traveller's tents. In the morning, Roberts felt extremely ill and sought the help of a Greek priest, who found him dry shelter in a cowshed. For the first time on his gruelling journey, Roberts devoted the whole day to bed rest. On May 4th, regaining some strength, Roberts explored the site. With obscure origins connected with the god Baal, the city of Baalbek had grown to importance in Hellenistic times, when it was known as Heliopolis ('The City of the Sun'). In the first century B.C. the Romans had established a cult of the Heliopolitan Jupiter there, and both Josephus Flavius...

Antoine-Baptiste PETIT Paris, 1800 – Versailles, 1864 Watercolor 18 x 27 cm Antoine-Baptiste Petit was a decorative painter and teacher of perspective. He produced views of Paris in...

This early 19th-century watercolour by British artist Paul Sandby Munn RWS (1773-1845) depicts a riverside view at Mallevy in North Wales. Amid a hasty world where technology consumes our waking hours, few of us find the time to consider the subtle beauties of quiet watercolours. Yet, during the late 18th century, when Munn began producing his skillfully-rendered views, this style of drawing was considered an act of rebellion. Indeed, to such an extent that, together with several associates, Munn contributed to one of the most vital artistic circles in British history - the “Brothers” sketching club. Held every Saturday, the sketching club sought to raise the status of landscape watercolours from their lowly position as mere copies of nature. Fellow artists such as John Varley, Thomas Girtin and John Sell Cotman...

Jules Coignet (1798-1860) Lago di Guarda, 1837, Inscribed "Lago di Guarda 9 8bre 1837" Graphite on paper 24 x 35 cm Framed : 37 x 48 cm Provenance : Galerie Paul Prouté, Autumn 1...

PROVENANCE: Christie’s South Kensington, England, June 10, 1986; Maynards Auction, Vancouver, Canada, December 6, 1994. This 19th cent wc depicts Charles Darwin in the Beagle’s Tender, Coastal Patagonia, Argentina. The son of an English mother and the Austrian Consul General in London, Conrad Martens pursued a career in painting following his father’s death in 1816. From the age of sixteen he studied under landscape watercolourist Copley Fielding, absorbing the traditions of the English watercolour school and Joshua Reynolds’ theories on painting. In 1833 Martens joined the HMS Beagle on a scientific survey expedition at Montevideo, South America, as ship’s artist, replacing the ailing Augustus Earle. He befriended the ship’s naturalist, Charles Darwin, whose empirical observation of landscape forms and climatic conditions would influence Martens’ practice. Martens left the Beagle in Valparaiso in 1834 and travelled to Australia via New Zealand and Tahiti, settling in Sydney in 1835 and setting up a studio in Pitt Street. Patronised by the colonial elite, he fulfilled many commissions for watercolours of the local landscape and Sydney Harbour, including Elizabeth Bay c1838, which features the grand neoclassical edifice of Elizabeth Bay House, built for the former colonial secretary...

RANDOLPH SCHWABE, RWS, NEAC (1885-1948) Giant’s Head Farm, Cerne Abbas Signed with initials, inscribed Giant’s Head Farm, Cerne Abbas and dated 193...

Camille ROQUEPLAN Mallemort 1803 - 1855 Paris Romantic landscape, View of an imaginary palace on the banks of a river Pastel on strong paper Signed lower left 26.5 x 38 cm 38 x...

To see our other views and maps of England, scroll down to "More from this Seller" and below it click on "See all from this Seller" - or send us a message if you cannot find the view you want. John Chessell Buckler (1793 - 1894) Horham Hall, Essex (1830) Watercolour 25 x 34 cm Signed and dated lower right; titled below. Horham Hall was built in Thaxted, Essex by Sir John Cutte in the early sixteenth century. The original hall was a timber-framed moated manor house built circa 1470, but it was largely demolished by Cutte, who built the present house between 1510 and 1515. Cutte was under-treasurer in the households of Henry VII and Henry VIII. The mansion was built in brick in two storeys in a quadrilateral layout with a gatehouse and incorporated some elements of the former building. The house was visited three times by Elizabeth I as the guest of Sir John Cutte. It is believed that the Tower was built for her to watch the local hunt. It was while staying at Horham in 1578 that the Queen received the envoy of the Duke of Alençon proposing marriage. John Chessell Buckler was a British architect, the eldest son of the architect John Buckler. His work included restorations of country houses and at the University of Oxford. Buckler received art lessons from the painter Francis Nicholson...

Graphite and watercolor on paper stock drawing by the Russian Federation artist, Carl Ivanovitch Kollmann. Circa 1830. Condition: Good. Actual drawing diameter is 6.5 inches. Impr...

To see our other views of Eton College, Oxford and Cambridge, scroll down to "More from this Seller" and below it click on "See all from this Seller" - or send us a message if you cannot find the view you want. Dr William Crotch (1775-1847) Eton College Chapel 13x20cm Pencil and colour wash Extensively inscribed to reverse Dated 10.20am August 1 1832 Provenance: Spink, King Street, London Composer and organist (a child prodigy, playing the organ of the Chapel Royal at the age of three-and-a-half) Crotch is most famous for probably beint the composter of the Westminster Chimes - struck by Big Ben inter alia. In 1797 he became Heatehr Professor of Music at Oxford University, becoming DMus in 1799. John Malchair, the musician and artist, became a friend whilst he was in Oxford, and so with his guidance Crotch took up sketching. He also took Malchair's habit of recording the date and time of his picture passing this habit to John Constable upon meeting him in London in 1805. He became first Principal of the Royal Academy of Music...

Louis-Nicolas CABAT Paris 1802 - 1893 Paris Tuscan Landscape, Civita la Vigna Watercolour on pape r Signed and dated "L Cabat 1837" and located "Civita La Vigna" 23 x 32.5 cm sheet ...

Jean-François Joseph LECOINTE Paris 1783 - Versailles 1858 The Temple of Vesta at Tivoli, near Rome Watercolor and brown ink Signed and dated "Lecointe 1833" lower left 56 x 44 cm s...

To see our other views of Oxford and Cambridge , particularly suitable for wedding and graduation presents, scroll down to "More from this Seller" and below it click on "See all from this Seller" - or send us a message if you cannot find the view you want. Attributed to Richard Bankes Harraden...

Graphite on buff paper 'Hales Abbey, Gloucestershire' initialled, inscribed and dated 1837 bottom left Image size: 8 x 13 1/2 inches (20 x 34.5 cm) 18th Century Hogarth frame and was...