This signed and dated study of clouds is one of a group of seven small monochrome watercolours that were sold together at auction in 1936 (Exhibitions: Christie’s, 27 March 1936, lot 1). Two of the drawings identified as part of the group are dated 1794, namely this work and Jedburgh Abbey, from the Riverbank (TG0188). Given that all of them appear to be on the same laid paper of similar dimensions, it is possible that they came from a sketchbook that was split up. A later inscription on Jedburgh Abbey notes that it was once in the collection of Dr Thomas Monro (1759–1833) and anecdotal evidence suggests that it went to New Zealand in 1841 after his death; it may have been at this stage, therefore, that the watercolours were mounted on uniform sheets of brown paper.

A date of 1794 and a Monro provenance for these sketches suggests two alternative interpretations of their purpose and function. On the one hand, the view of Jedburgh Abbey anticipates by two years Girtin’s visit to the site, and, like the vast bulk of the material produced for Monro, it must therefore have been copied from the work of another artist. It has been suggested that this was also the case with this cloud study, together with its companion piece, A Sky Study (TG0199) – more specifically, that they were based on the studies of Alexander Cozens (1717–86) or his son John Robert Cozens (1752–97) (Herbert Art Gallery, 1975, p.19). On the other hand, the young artist had only recently left the studio of his master Edward Dayes (1763–1804), and it is possible that Dayes’ exhortation to students to sketch natural effects at all times of the day, and specifically to make studies of light and shade in monochrome, continued to influence Girtin’s practice. The fluid use of monochrome washes seen here indeed suggests that the young artist sketched the work on the spot and that he struggled to match the rapidly changing formation of the clouds. Whether the sketch was simply produced as an exercise in capturing a transient effect or whether Girtin also had in mind the production of a studio watercolour – such as the contemporary view of Ely Cathedral (TG0202) – is not clear, but it is surely significant that he took the trouble to sign and date the work. It may be that even as early as 1794, right at the beginning of his association with Monro, Girtin had discovered that there was a market for his nature studies.

Girtin’s early sky studies have featured extensively in the literature on the development of a naturalistic landscape painting in Britain around the turn of the century, and specifically as a precursor to the meteorologically informed depiction of the sky by John Constable (1776–1837) (Lyles, 2000, pp.142–43). John Thornes, for instance, has described this cloud study as being twenty-five years ahead of Constable (Thornes, 1999, p.179), whilst the catalogue to the exhibition The Cloud Watchers praised the central part of the sketch as depicting ‘a cumulous cluster with good variation of brightness’ (Herbert Art Gallery, 1975, p.19). It is difficult to see how Girtin could have achieved such effects without studying the passing clouds on the spot, though it is clear he did not share Constable’s commitment to empirical observation. What Girtin did do, however, was to exploit the capacity of the watercolour medium, and specifically monochrome washes, to capture transient effects; however quickly Constable worked in oils, the effect was likely to have passed by the time he had finished his sketch, and he would have inevitably depended on his memory.

1794

Jedburgh Abbey, from the Riverbank

TG0188

(?) 1794

A Sky Study

TG0199

(?) 1794

Ely Cathedral, from the South East

TG0202