Towne seems to have had a particular fascination with waterfalls; this watercolour is one of four views of Chudleigh Rocks dated 1787. The previous year Towne had traveled to the Lake District and made numerous studies of the waterfalls of Stock Gill near Ambleside. The Lake District views show water tumbling through dense undergrowth. Here Towne depicts bright sunlight on the open, rocky landscape. Areas of the paper are left unpainted to indicate white clouds and foaming water.

 

Literature: Gerald Bauer, Le Siecle d’Or de L’Aquarelle Anglaise (Paris, 1998), p. 45; FT540 in the Paul Mellon Centre’s online catalogue raisonné of the works of Francis Towne

Provenance: Cornish Torbock (1905-1993), 1982; Sotheby’s, 14th April 1994, lot. 55, where purchased by Adam Crick (1957-2016); bequest of Adam Crick to Winchester College, 2016