Westminster Bridge, the Surrey side
Scott specialized in marines and views of the Thames, and this panoramic wash drawing offers fascinating insights into his working process. Executed on several joined sheets of paper, it approximates the scale of many of the artist's paintings and depicts London's Westminster Bridge shortly before its November 1750 opening. Scott drew and painted the bridge from many vantage points during its eleven-year construction and kept the drawings for reference. To make the present work he positioned himself near the Southwark bank, looking upriver. Carefully observed details were combined with subtle washes applied to record light and shade. A ramshackle timber yard at left was one of many along the river. Busy ferrymen in the foreground use a new landing beyond the bridge, but will lose much of their trade once the span opens.
Artwork Details
- Title: Westminster Bridge, the Surrey side
- Artist: Samuel Scott (British, London ca. 1702–1772 Bath)
- Date: ca. 1750
- Medium: Watercolor and black chalk, with touches of pen and ink
- Dimensions: sheet: 9 3/8 x 34 1/4 in. (23.8 x 87 cm)
- Classification: Drawings
- Credit Line: Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest and PECO Foundation and Malcolm Hewitt Wiener Foundation Gifts, 2010
- Object Number: 2010.231
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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