An ivy covered ruin

late 1780s–early 1790s

Not on view

This watercolor likely represents a ruin in Wales, with the inscription and number 57 connecting it to a series that Towne made when he traveled there in 1777. The style is more consistent, however, with his work of the next decade, so the artist must have returned to or reworked an earlier composition, a characteristic practice. Layered colored washes in the trees resemble those in his "The Cascade in the Groves at Ambleside," 1786 (Private Collection), while the massively buttressed medieval ruin overgrown with greenery demonstrates Towne’s engagement with the picturesque.

Artwork Details

Title: An ivy covered ruin
Artist: Francis Towne (British, Isleworth, Middlesex 1739–1816 Exeter)
Date: late 1780s–early 1790s
Medium: Watercolor with pen and brown ink with traces of graphite
Dimensions: Sheet: 8 1/4 × 10 1/2 in. (20.9 × 26.6 cm)
Classification: Drawings
Credit Line: Gift of Roberta J. M. Olson and Alexander B. V. Johnson, in memory of Laurie Vance Johnson and E. Dudley H. Johnson, 2013
Object Number: 2013.1121.1
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

By Francis Towne

In the same medium

From the same time and place

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A View near the Arco Scuro, looking towards the Villa Medici, at Rome, Francis Towne British, Watercolor over graphite with pen and brown ink — A View near the Arco Scuro, looking towards the Villa Medici, at Rome
Francis Towne
1785

Berry Pomeroy Castle in Devon, Francis Towne British, Watercolor and pen and ink on two joined sheets — Berry Pomeroy Castle in Devon
Francis Towne
1773–80, with additions in 1805

View of Lake Como, Francis Towne British, Pen and brown ink and watercolor — View of Lake Como
Francis Towne
August 27, 1781

View of Lake Como with Monte Legnone, Francis Towne British, Pen and brown ink and watercolor — View of Lake Como with Monte Legnone
Francis Towne
August 27, 1781

Near Glaris [Glarus], Switzerland, Francis Towne British, Pen and black ink, brush and gray wash, over traces of graphite — Near Glaris [Glarus], Switzerland
Francis Towne
C. & I. Honig
September 2, 1781

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