Bentley was apprenticed to the engraver Theodore Fielding (1781–1851). Like his brothers Thales and Copley, Theodore also painted in watercolours. Through the Fieldings, Bentley would have had access to the watercolours of Richard Parkes Bonington (see cat. no. 18), some of whose works were engraved in the Fielding studio. He was a close friend of the artist William Callow (see cat. no. 21), and together they travelled all over Britain, Jersey, the north of Ireland, and Normandy between 1836 and 1841. Bentley also exhibited views of Venice, Holland and Düsseldorf, although it is not clear if he actually visited those places.
In this scene, possibly a view in the Channel Islands, Bentley has created a convincing impression of swollen, choppy waters in the foreground. This is balanced by a tranquil sky and the finely-drawn detail of the harbour behind. Warm orange tones in the sails contrast with the cool grey-green of the sea, which is flecked with white. The figures huddled in the fishing boat, one with a bright red cap, provide human interest just off-centre.
This watercolour was part of the bequest of Montague Rendall, Headmaster of Winchester College from 1911 to 1924. His enthusiasm for the visual arts, in particular the Italian Renaissance, spread to generations of schoolboys during his thirty-seven years at Winchester. The young Kenneth Clark (1903–1983), later a distinguished museum director and creator of the BBC’s television series Civilisation, was one of the pupils who attended his inspirational lantern slide lectures on Sunday evenings.
Provenance: Bequest of Montague Rendall, 1950