Thomas Girtin

Sale, London, Christie's, 18 October 1966, lot 145, bt. Cunliffe,

by family descent to the present owners

G. Smith, Thomas Girtin (1775-1802): An Online Catalogue, Archive and Introduction to the Artist, no. TG1705 

In his jewel-like watercolour, Girtin stands on the so-called ‘Farm of the Friars’ at the confluence of the Rivers Teviot and Tweed. He looks north-west towards the town of Kelso, with its twelfth century abbey positioned above the houses to the left of the tree-laden island, and the multi-arched stone bridge visible on the right. It is a fine day and, in the foreground, a group of washerwomen take advantage of the sun’s warmth to dry clothes and linen.

Kelso lies between Jedburgh and Coldstream in the Scottish borders. The picturesque location of the ruins in the town made it a popular destination for travelers and artists alike in the 18^th century. Girtin first drew the abbey in the early 1790s when copying the work of Thomas Hearne but he witnessed it for himself on two occasions, firstly in 1796 and then again in 1800.¹ The present drawing is thought to date from the second visit and may well have been started on the spot.

Despite his tragically early death, Girtin is considered to be one of the greatest artists of the golden age of British watercolour painting. Indeed, his friend and exact contemporary, J.M.W. Turner, is recorded as saying ‘if Tom had lived, I would have starved’.² Girtin’s work is rare in private hands and the present example, which has not been seen in public since 1966, is particularly interesting as it not only remains on its original mount but this support also includes a very rare example of Girtin's handwriting.³ These attributes, combined with the work’s good state of preservation and fine subject, make its reappearance here an event of some importance.

We are very grateful to Dr. Greg Smith for this help when cataloguing this lot.

^1. G. Smith, Thomas Girtin (1775-1802): An Online Catalogue, Archive and Introduction to the Artist, nos. TG0270 & TG0270a

^2. W.C. Monkhouse, Turner, London 1879, p. 24

^3. For another example of Girtin’s handwriting see: G. Smith, op. cit., no. TG0075