Westminster Bridge

Location

Country: UK
City: London
Place: HM Revenue & Customs, 100 Parliament Street

William Westall was born in Hertford; the son of a brewer and brother of Richard, RA. He enrolled at the Royal Academy schools in 1799 and was later draughtsman for a voyage to Australia and the South Seas. After being shipwrecked he travelled to Canton in China and to India, staying in Bombay for several months. He returned to England in 1805 but later set off for Madeira and Jamaica. He became a member of the Society of Painters in Water Colours (1811) and an associate of the Academy (1812). Following a mental breakdown he regularly visited the Lake District and published ‘Views of the Valley and Vale of Keswick’ (1820). His series of aquatints of the Thames, universities and public schools for Ackermann are among his most popular works.

Places

England, River Thames, London, Westminster Bridge, Westminster Abbey, Palace of Westminster, Westminster

Subjects

rowing boat, crane, topography, townscape/cityscape, river bank, river, bridge (urban), government building, house, abbey, hall, barge/canal boat, sailboat

Materials & Techniques

lithograph

Artist

William Westall (1781 - 1850)

Title

Westminster Bridge

Date

published February 1827

Medium

Lithograph

Acquisition

Purchased from Sotheby's, 28 June 1950

Provenance

Sold through Sotheby's, London, ‘Old Master and Modern Engraving and Etchings’ sale, on 28 June 1950 (Lot 372; with GAC 1137); from which sale purchased by Richard Walker on behalf of the Ministry of Works

GAC number

1136