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Inscribed on original mount: General View of the Interesting Ruins of Pembroke Castle, on Pennarmouth Creek with part of the Town of Pembroke/Taken from the Grounds of John Meyrick Esq.r at Bush

Watercolour over pencil on laid paper

12.8 by 20.5 cm., 5 by 8 in.

Price on request

Inscribed on original mount: View of part of Holywell, from the Ascent of Pen y Ball Hill, South of the Town./looking over it to the Estuary of the Dee, & to the Peninsula of Wyral./Flintshire

Watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour

13.1 by 22.1 cm., 5 by 8 ½ in.

Price on request

Inscribed with title by a later hand on reverse of original mount

Watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour on laid paper

243 x 312 mm., 9 ½ x 12 ¼ in.

 

Provenance

Anonymous sale, Sotheby's, 25th January 1988, lot 78, one of two

 

‘Warwick’ Smith travelled to Italy in 1776, under the patronage of the 2^nd Early of Warwick, who funded his travels. He became well known within the British artistic community in Rome, sketching with William Pars and Thomas Jones as well as Francis Towne, with whom he travelled back to England in 1781.

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Inscribed on reverse of original mount: ‘Fords of the Vyrniew River, near Llanymynech between/Welshpool & Oswestry. Intricate & often unsafe./ - The Brython Hills in the distance – ‘, dated ‘Aug. 6^th. 1795. and numbered 36. Further inscribed: View taken Augst 6^th 1795.

Watercolour over pencil

13.4 by 22.8 cm., 5 ¼ by 9 in.

 

After his return from Italy in 1781, `Warwick’ Smith visited Wales thirteen times between 1784 and 1806. This dates from his tour in the summer of 1795. Dated watercolours show he was at Raglan on 1^st July, Carmarthen (9^th), St David’s Head (10^th), Bardsey Island (23^rd), top of Snowdon (26^th) Beddgelert (27^th).

 

The river Vyrnwy is a tributary of the river Severn and flows from the hills of northern Powys across the border into Shropshire.

Price on request

Watercolour over pencil

126 x 210 mm., 5 x 8 ¼ in.

Provenance:

Private Collection, UK

 

This drawing was part of a group of over 700 by Smith belonging to the George Greville, 2^nd Earl of Warwick which was dispersed amongst his descendants. Smith earned his sobriquet ‘Warwick’ due to his long patronage by the Earl of Warwick, who not only purchased hundreds of drawings from the artist, but also funded Smith’s two tours of Italy, one between 1776  and 1781 and again in 1785, when the Earl accompanied him.

 

During the latter part of the 18^th century, Wales became a fashionable destination with tourists and artists alike. The Napoleonic Wars meant that Britain was cut off from the rest of Europe and so travellers and artists turned inward for inspiration. Wales, with its dramatic landscape, castles, coast and history captured their imagination.

 

During the last decades of the 18^th Century, various publications brought the landscape of Wales to the notice of the wider public. In 1776, Paul Sandby (1731–1809) published XII views in North Wales. In 1778 and in 1781, Thomas Pennant (1726–1798) published his 2 volume Tours in Wales. In the following year, the Rev. William Gilpin (1724–1804) published, Observations on the River Wye and several parts of South Wales etc.

 

‘Warwick’ Smith, who knew Rev. Gilpin through his relationship with his brother Sawrey Gilpin (1733 – 1807), was in the vanguard of artists travelling to Wales. His interest was probably further peaked by his friendship with the Welsh artist, Thomas Jones (1742–1803), who had been in Italy at the same time. Smith undertook his first visit in 1784 and the inspiration he found in the dramatic landscape of the country is clear: he made a total thirteen trips between 1784 and 1806.

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Watercolour over traces of pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour

13 by 21.7cm., 5 by 8 1/2 inches

 

Provenance:

Anonymous sale, Sotheby's, 13th November 1980, lot 76

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Signed on reverse of original washline mount: John Smyth 1797 and inscribed with the title

Watercolour over traces of pencil

39.8 by 57cm, 15 ? by 22 ? inches

 

Provenance:

Private Collection, Gloucestershire until 2007

 

A view of Terracina by Smith was engraved in 1796 for his ?Select Views of Italy?, vol. II, pl.45. The present watercolour, drawn in the following year, may be a commission arising from the publication of the engraving. ?Warwick? Smith?s description of the engraving is as follows: ?Terracina was the Anxur of the ancients. It stands high. There is but little remarkable in it at present except the cathedral, which is erected upon the ruins of the temple of Jupiter. The antique columns of the latter support the facade of the wooden fabric. This view represents the part of Terracina which in the time of the Volscians was considerable: it is now only a harbour for a few small fishing boats. Here is a dogana, or custom-house, belonging to the Pope, for the purpose of examining whatever merchandise is exported from or imported to the Neapolitan dominions.? A smaller view of Terracina by Warwick Smith taken from a slightly different angle is recorded in the Opp? collection.

 

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watercolour over traces of pencil

16.4 by 24.2cm., 6 1/2 by 9 1/2 inches

 

Smith was in Italy from 1776 until 1781 under the patronage of the Earl of Warwick. The present watercolour is likely to date from after his return.

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Inscribed with title in the artist?s hand verso

Pen and grey ink and watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour on laid paper

36.3 by 26.1 cm., 14 ? by 10 ? inches

 

Provenance:

Possibly the Merivale Family;

With the Squire Gallery, Baker St., London;

Bought from them by the Fine Art Society, 1946-47;

Bryan G. Hamilton, Tunbridge Wells, Kent;

With Appleby Bros., London, April 1959;

With Boydell Galleries, Liverpool;

Bertram Williams, Formby, Liverpool, 1961;

Bertram Nowell Smith, his sale, Christie?s, 6th November 1973, lot 211, bought Wright for ?1,200

 

Exhibited:

Bootle Museum and Art Gallery, Exhibition of Early English Watercolours from the collection of Mr B.N. Williams, 1963, no.57

 

Literature:

Huon Mallalieu, The Dictionary of British Watercolour Artists up to 1920, 1979, vol. II, p.527, ill.

 

Previously attributed to Francis Towne, this is a watercolour drawn by ?Warwick? Smith on his journey through the Alps with Towne in the summer of 1781. Smith left England for Italy in 1776 thanks to the patronage of the Earl of Warwick and remained there until his return with Towne in 1781. He lived mainly in Rome where he joined the community of British artists which included Towne, Cozens, Pars and Thomas Jones. Towne and ?Warwick? Smith chose the eastern route over the Alps, passing the Italian Lakes then going via Chiavenna and through the Spl?gen Pass into Switzerland in late August 1781. Towne?s drawings ?Near Mount Spl?gen? (dated 29th August) and ?The Top of the Spl?gen Pass? are in the Tate Gallery (see Timothy Wilcox, Francis Towne, 1997, nos. 37 and 38, pp.93-95) and ?Mount Spl?gen? by Smith is in the Cecil Higgins Art Gallery, Bedford (see Wilcox, op. cit., p.94, ill. fig. 32).

 

The present drawing shows the influence of Towne on ?Warwick? Smith?s work at this period. The use of pen and ink in Smith?s drawing, which is typical of Towne, is evident in a number of his work executed in Italy and particularly the group executed in the Naples area in 1778-79, many of which are now in the Tate Gallery. Baskett and Snelgrove note of Smith that ?the drawings made on the spot in Italy show him at his best, responding with a new amplitude of style to the strong sunlight. . . . Undoubtedly too, he benefited from the companionship in Italy of William Pars and later of Francis Towne, with whom he travelled back through Switzerland in the autumn of 1781? (see John Baskett and Dudley Snelgrove, English Drawings and Watercolors 1550-1850 in the Mellon Collection, 1972, p.43). Although the use of pen and ink shows Towne?s influence, the heavy depiction of the foliage and the figure grouping in the foreground are typical of Smith.

 

We are grateful to Richard Stephens for his help in cataloguing this drawing.

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The Ruins of Benton Castle on the Cleddau, Pembrokeshire

Inscribed on original mount: The Ruins of Benton Castle as they appears from Milford Haven on the approach from Pembroke Ferry -/The gleam on the Haven above this Ruin marks the terminating course of the Two Cleddys near Rose Castle Point – Percilly Top is seen from hence in the far distance./Pembrokeshire

Watercolour over pencil on laid paper

12.8 by 20.3 cm., 5 by 8 in.

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Inscribed on original mount: From the Sands on the lower Road from Conway to Penmaenmawr, by Conway Marsh./Opening the Western Point of Penmaen Bach & extending thence by Foel Fras Moun.tn to Penmaenmawr/Caernarvonshire

Watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour

13.5 by 22.9 cm., 5 ¼ by 9 in.

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Watercolour over pencil

31.7 by 42.5 cm., 12 ½ by 16 ¾ in.

 

Provenance:

With Colnaghi, London, 1969;

Private Collection until 2014

 

Exhibited:

London, Colnaghi, 28 May – 13 June 1969, no. 116

 

Tivoli stands dramatically on the lower slopes of the Sabine hills about fifteen miles east of Rome. It was a popular summer retreat during Imperial times and its beautiful scenery attracted Northern European artists from the seventeenth century onwards. All British artists in the eighteenth century from Richards Wilson onwards visited and painted at Tivoli. `Warwick’ Smith here depicts the circular Temple of Sibyl which stands at the north-east corner of the town.  Below thunders the `Cascatelle’ or Grand Cascade of the river Aniene, spray from which Smith depicts.

 

A close-up view of the temple by `Warwick’ Smith is in the Tate Gallery (ex-Oppé collection) and a view from another angle is in the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa. A watercolour of the Villa Maecenas, Tivoli showing the Cascatelle is in the Victoria and Albert Museum (see Francis Hawcroft, Travels in Italy 1776-1783, 1988, p.52-53, no. 56, ill.).

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Inscribed with title on old backing, watercolour over pencil on laid paper watermarked with a fleur de lys

24.4 by 34.5 cm., 9 ½ by 13 ¾ in.

 

John ‘Warwick’ Smith was born in Cumberland and studied under Sawrey Gilpin. In 1776, he was sent to Rome by his patron George, 2nd Earl of Warwick and remained there for five years. His stay coincided with those of his fellow artists William Pars, Thomas Jones (who records some of Smith’s activities in his Memoirs) and Francis Towne with whom he returned to England via Switzerland in 1781. In January 1778 he was recorded as living in a house about two miles outside the Porta Pia, but in March of that year he set off for Naples where he spent sixteen months. He was back in Rome in July 1779 and left for home in August 1781.

 

This is likely to be a view of the many villas in the countryside outside Rome.

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Inscribed on original mount: Barmouth –The Port of Merioneth./From the Sands/Merionethshire and dated 16^th July 1790

Watercolour over pencil

12.9 by 20.8 cm., 5 by 8 in.

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Inscribed on original mount: Barmouth/From Penrhyn Point./Merionethshire and dated 11^th August 1797

Watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour

13.2 by 22.1 cm., 5 by 8 ¾ in.

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Inscribed on original mount: The Eastern Light House on S.t Annes Head at the Entrance into Milford Haven from S.t George’s Channel./This light was disused on the erection of The Two new Light Houses in 1800. It looked Sea-ward to S.t Georges Channel, & within to The main channel of the Haven./Between The Stack Rock & Thorn Island, & within which is Nangle Block House appears West Nangle Bay, in which The Leda Frigate was lost.

Watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour on laid paper

13 by 22 cm., 5 by 8 ½ in.

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Inscribed on original mount: View looking towards West Nangle Point, & Thorn Island, & beyond Thorn to S.t Annes Head, at the Entrance of Milford Haven/The Stack Rock off Sandy Haven Bay seen to the Right/Pembrokeshire

Watercolour over pencil on laid paper

12.7 by 20.6 cm., 5 by 8 in.

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Inscribed on original mount: View of Rhaiadr Gwy, on the River Wye which here extends its clear and early Stream from Plinlimmon Mountain/Rhaiadr Gwy is situated in a deep pleasing Valley, surrounded by mountains – Behind it in this View are the Cwm Tyddwr Hills over which is seen the arduous ascent leading to Cwm/Radnorshire and dated 1787

Watercolour over pencil heightened with scratching out

12.5 by 21.8 cm., 4 ¾ by 8 ½ in.

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Inscribed on original mount: The near Approach to the Vale of Myfod watered by the Vryniew River./On the road from Llanfair to Myfod, and Llanymynach – Myfod see in the distance./Montgomeryshire

Watercolour over pencil

12.8 by 22.4 cm., 5 by 8 ¾ in.

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Inscribed with title verso, watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour

47.7 by 31.7 cm., 18 ¾ by 12 ½ in.

 

Provenance:

With Thos Agnew & Sons, London;

Private Collection

 

Smith was the son of a Cumberland gardener and studied under Sawrey Gilpin (1733-1807), another local artist. Gilpin introduced Smith to the Earl of Warwick who paid for his trip to Italy from 1776 until 1781, hence his nickname. Smith passed through Switzerland on his return to England with Francis Towne in the summer of 1781.  They left Rome in August and entered Switzerland near Chiavenna travelling up to Lake Walenstadt then headed west to Geneva. From there they travelled south to Chamonix and returned to Geneva via Montreux.

Dated drawings by Towne reveal that they were still in Geneva on 11^th September and had reached Vevey on the 20^th. They headed north from Geneva and homewards on the 23^rd.

 

 The river Trient originates from the Trient Glacier and flows through the village of the same name.  Trient is situated a few miles to the south-west of Martigny and north-east of Chamonix near the French-Swiss border. Another view of this bridge, in landscape format, was sold at Christie's South Kensington on 20th May 2015, lot 597

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Inscribed on original mount: The sequester’d Hamlet of Llanberis, in Gwasted Nant looking to the/Upper Lake of Llanberis, & to the remaining Tower of Dolbadern Castle/Caernavonshire

Watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour on laid paper

13.3 by 21.9 cm., 5 ¼ by 8 ½ in.

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Inscribed on original mount: July 14th 1792./Interesting View of the Upper Lake of Llanberis - from the Road towards/Llanberis from Carnarvon, looking to Snowdon & its Mountain Train.

Watercolour over pencil

13.3 by 22 cm., 5 ¼ by 8 ½ in.

 

The rock formations in the foreground of the present watercolour echo the dramatic forms of the mountains beyond, framing the view through to the majestic Snowdon.

 

The 1792 tour, when the present watercolour was executed, was undertaken in the company of the Earl of Warwick’s brother the Hon. Robert Fulke Greville (1751-1824) and the artist Julius Caesar Ibbetson (1759 – 1817).

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Signed on reverse of original mount: A Sketch/Porta Salaro, at Rome/JSmith

Watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour

21 by 33.9 cm., 8 ¼ by 13 ¼ in.

 

Provenance:

Probably Sir William Forbes, 7^th Bt. of Pitsligo;

By descent in the Forbes Family of Pitsligo, Fettercairn House, Kincardineshire, Scotland

 

Smith was sent to Italy by the 2^nd Earl of Warwick in 1776 and he remained there until 1781. It was a golden age for British watercolour artists in Rome and his stay coincided with Towne, Cozens, William Pars and Thomas Jones amongst others. He reached Rome in early 1776 and stayed in and around the city until March 1778 when he spent over a year in Naples returning in July 1779. He returned to England in August 1781 and worked up his Italian sketches for the rest of his career.

 

This on-the-spot sketch is likely to date from the early months of 1778 when Smith was living two miles from the Porta Pia, the next door gate to Porta Salaria. The Porta Salaria formed part of the Aurelian wall built in the third century but was knocked down in 1921 to improve the flow of traffic. It stood to the north-east of the centre of Rome near the Villa Borghese. 

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Signed and inscribed with title on reverse of original mount

Watercolour over pencil heightened with touches of bodycolour on laid paper

24.9 by 32.4 cm., 9 ¾ by 12 ¾ in.

 

Provenance:

Anonymous Sotheby's, 25th January 1988, lot 78, one of two