Winchester College Publication English Watercolours from the Adam Crick Bequest | Page 6

Thomas Rowlandson 1756-1827
Nymphs Bathing
Pen and ink with watercolour
18 x 24.8 cm
T
homas Rowlandson is widely celebrated as one of
the great English caricaturists. He was also among
the finest draughtsmen of his day and a sensitive painter
of landscape. All these qualities are exemplified by this
watercolour. The jagged rocks and lively foliage are
typical of Rowlandson’s style. The faces of the bathers
show his ability to evoke character through a few strokes
of the pen.
Rowlandson trained at the Royal Academy Schools from
1772 to 1778. He would have been instructed according
to the classical ideals promoted by the President, Sir
Joshua Reynolds. Much of Rowlandson’s work draws
on the classical tradition in which he was trained, while
poking fun at its high-mindedness. The subject of female
bathers had been painted by many great artists, from
Titian to Rubens. Rowlandson’s light-hearted treatment
of the theme was almost certainly influenced by French
Rococo painting. As a young man Rowlandson spent
time in Paris and became familiar with the work of
Francois Boucher, including his influential paintings of
bathers in the landscape.
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