View of Chepstow, Wales
This elevated vista shows the River Wye from the Forest of Dean, with the Welsh town of Chepstow in the distance. Davis uses the curves of the river to carry the eye toward its estuary. Broad washes of green and brown suggest foreground foliage, while the middle ground is rendered in paler tones, and tiny sailboats near the horizon help to convey a sense of expansive space.
Davis was a child prodigy who won a medal from the Society of Arts in London at age eleven, then studied at the Royal Academy Schools, and pursued a career painting portraits, landscapes and watercolor views. He specialized in representing art gallery interiors and his watercolors share the sensibility of his contemporary Richard Parkes Bonington, contrasting freely rendered passages of wash with precise details.
Davis was a child prodigy who won a medal from the Society of Arts in London at age eleven, then studied at the Royal Academy Schools, and pursued a career painting portraits, landscapes and watercolor views. He specialized in representing art gallery interiors and his watercolors share the sensibility of his contemporary Richard Parkes Bonington, contrasting freely rendered passages of wash with precise details.
Artwork Details
- Title: View of Chepstow, Wales
- Artist: John Scarlett Davis (British, Leominster, Herefordshire 1804–1845 London)
- Date: 1834
- Medium: Watercolor over graphite with stopping out and gum arabic
- Dimensions: sheet: 7 7/8 x 13 in. (20 x 33 cm)
- Classification: Drawings
- Credit Line: Purchase, Robert Gordon and PECO Foundation Gifts, 2008
- Object Number: 2008.200
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
John Scarlett Davis
1827
Joseph Mallord William Turner
1843
Samuel Palmer
1856
John Ruskin
1849–50
Dante Gabriel Rossetti
Henry Treffry Dunn
1867
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.