Waterloo Bridge and Somerset House
Pennell, a Philadelphia-born Quaker, spent the first two decades of his career abroad, living primarily in London, where he became a close associate of Whistler. Here, he represents Waterloo Bridge from the south bank of the Thames, with the long facade of Somerset House behind and dingies moored in the foreground. The nine-arched bridge, adorned with double Doric columns, opened with much fanfare in 1817 but was seriously decayed by 1905. It would not be rebuilt until the 1940s.
Artwork Details
- Title: Waterloo Bridge and Somerset House
- Artist: Joseph Pennell (American, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1857–1926 New York)
- Date: 1905
- Medium: Etching, first state
- Dimensions: Plate: 8 1/16 × 10 7/8 in. (20.5 × 27.7 cm)
Sheet: 10 1/4 × 12 15/16 in. (26 × 32.8 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1917
- Object Number: 17.3.813
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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