Welsh Landscape

John Varley (1778 - 1842)

Watercolour on paper

1818
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  • About the work
    Location
    Country: UK
    City: London
    Place: Government Art Collection
  • About the artist
    John Varley, watercolour painter, was born in Hackney, Middlesex. He was a pupil of Joseph Charles Barrow and exhibited his first work at the Royal Academy in 1798. He worked in Wales from 1798/9 to 1802, making studies that would provide subject matter for the rest of his career. His subjects were frequently English and Welsh towns, Welsh mountain views or English landscapes, and his work demonstrates the influence of Thomas Girtin. In 1804, Varley played a leading role in establishing the Society of Painters in Water Colours. He was also a teacher of artists. By 1821 his fortunes had declined and he was declared bankrupt. He appears to have remained insolvent for the next two decades until his death at the age of 64.
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  • Details
    Title
    Welsh Landscape
    Date
    1818
    Medium
    Watercolour on paper
    Dimensions
    height: 37.00 cm, width: 73.00 cm
    Acquisition
    Purchased from Gilbert Davis, July 1964
    Inscription
    sdbr
    Provenance
    With Colnaghi; collection of actor and art collector Gilbert Davis (1899-1983) (and on loan to the Ministry of Works from 1952); from whom purchased by the Ministry of Works in July 1964
    GAC number
    1801