Floor plan

Style galleriesGeorgian Britain

Georgian Britain

From a rocky shoreline, we look on several light-skinned people working by the sea with a boat and a net in this freely painted, almost square seascape. The scene is framed by a silhouette of low boulders along the lower right corner, and a towering cream-white rock rising two-thirds of the way up the composition to our left. Scrubby, celery-green vegetation grows on the rocky outcropping. Near the center, close to the towering white rocks, three people sit, reaching for something near one end of a boat while a fourth person braces against the rock, presumably to push the boat out to the sea. Closer to us, three people on the shore work with a net. Two stand with the net hooked over their shoulders, and a third person crouches in the water with head down. The people all wear simple shirts and pants in shades of tan, mustard yellow, burnt orange, and pale blue. All but two wear hats. The sea meets the shore with frothy white foam and cresting, low waves. The sea beyond fades from pale sage green to arctic blue along the horizon, which comes about a third of the way up the composition. Two sail boats tilt against the wind in the distance. Pale, smoky lavender-purple clouds drift across the ice-blue sky.
A work made of engraved letterhead, pen and ink calligraphy, and graphite ruling on parchment, folded with strap and (missing) seal.
Bray Church Yard, by John Varley, 1807
Portrait of Catherine Grey, Lady Manners, by Thomas Lawrence, 1794
The image shows a landscape with a rolling hill in the foreground sloping downward. The horizon is high, providing a view over fields and sky. Sheep graze on the hill, tended by a person. A large, dark tree is on the right. Brushstrokes vary in the sky and land, with broad strokes for clouds and finer ones for grass and foliage. The color palette is mainly black, white, and shades of grey, highlighting light and shadow.
This painting shows a serene pastoral scene with trees, a wooden gate, and foliage extending towards the horizon. Closest to us, there is a low riverbank with some tree branches in the water. Up a grassy dirt hill, two donkeys are visible off to the right, partially hidden by vegetation. On the left, a dirt path leads to the wooden gate. To the left of the gate, two people sit on the grass with a wicker basket between them. The tall trees that rise in the background have leaves in shades of green, yellow, and dark orange. The sky above the scene is yellow with some hints of light blue, and golden light shines down on the landscape.

The works in this room are listed below.

Works in this room

Portraits, conversation pieces and watercolour landscapes from Hogarth to Constable.

Section 1, north wall

  1. From a rocky shoreline, we look on several light-skinned people working by the sea with a boat and a net in this freely painted, almost square seascape. The scene is framed by a silhouette of low boulders along the lower right corner, and a towering cream-white rock rising two-thirds of the way up the composition to our left. Scrubby, celery-green vegetation grows on the rocky outcropping. Near the center, close to the towering white rocks, three people sit, reaching for something near one end of a boat while a fourth person braces against the rock, presumably to push the boat out to the sea. Closer to us, three people on the shore work with a net. Two stand with the net hooked over their shoulders, and a third person crouches in the water with head down. The people all wear simple shirts and pants in shades of tan, mustard yellow, burnt orange, and pale blue. All but two wear hats. The sea meets the shore with frothy white foam and cresting, low waves. The sea beyond fades from pale sage green to arctic blue along the horizon, which comes about a third of the way up the composition. Two sail boats tilt against the wind in the distance. Pale, smoky lavender-purple clouds drift across the ice-blue sky.
    Seashore with FishermenThomas Gainsborough, c. 1781/1782Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. A work made of engraved letterhead, pen and ink calligraphy, and graphite ruling on parchment, folded with strap and (missing) seal.
    Recovery Document (Land Title Grant)Unrecorded British maker, 1702/14 (Queen Anne period)Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  3. Bray Church Yard, by John Varley, 1807
    Bray Church YardJohn Varley, 1807Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Section 1, south wall

  1. Portrait of Catherine Grey, Lady Manners, by Thomas Lawrence, 1794
    Portrait of Catherine Grey, Lady MannersThomas Lawrence, 1794Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. The image shows a landscape with a rolling hill in the foreground sloping downward. The horizon is high, providing a view over fields and sky. Sheep graze on the hill, tended by a person. A large, dark tree is on the right. Brushstrokes vary in the sky and land, with broad strokes for clouds and finer ones for grass and foliage. The color palette is mainly black, white, and shades of grey, highlighting light and shadow.
    NoonDavid Lucas, 1830Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. This painting shows a serene pastoral scene with trees, a wooden gate, and foliage extending towards the horizon. Closest to us, there is a low riverbank with some tree branches in the water. Up a grassy dirt hill, two donkeys are visible off to the right, partially hidden by vegetation. On the left, a dirt path leads to the wooden gate. To the left of the gate, two people sit on the grass with a wicker basket between them. The tall trees that rise in the background have leaves in shades of green, yellow, and dark orange. The sky above the scene is yellow with some hints of light blue, and golden light shines down on the landscape.
    Landscape with Picnickers and Donkeys by a GateJoseph Paul, c. 1830-1880Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 2, south wall

  1. Elizabeth Farren (born about 1759, died 1829), Later Countess of Derby, by Thomas Lawrence, 1790
    Elizabeth Farren (born about 1759, died 1829), Later Countess of DerbyThomas Lawrence, 1790Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  2. A work made of pen and black ink and brush and black ink wash, with touches of pen and brown ink, on ivory laid paper.
    Hannah Presenting Samuel to EliJohn Flaxman, c. 1783Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

Section 2, north wall

  1. Large marine landscape of boats on rough waves, storm clouds.
    Fishing Boats with Hucksters Bargaining for FishJoseph Mallord William Turner, 1837–38Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago
  2. We look out onto a landscape with low, grassy hills to the left, a lake to the right, and a brick building in the center distance below a sky filled with towering white clouds in this horizontal painting. A wooden fence closer to us crosses the landscape from the lower left corner and disappears where the land slopes down to meet the water at the center of the painting. Several black and white cows graze in the field beyond the fence to our left. Two men in a wooden boat pull in nets on the lake to our right near a pair of swans. The lake crosses the composition in the near distance, disappearing into a culvert farther back. A donkey pulls a small carriage with two people near a bridge that crosses the lake in the distance to our left. The brick manor house is visible through a break in the full, deep green trees that line the horizon, which comes halfway up the composition. The clouds cast noticeable shadows in the brightly sunlit scene.
    Wivenhoe Park, EssexJohn Constable, 1816Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  3. The image displays a landscape with a high vantage point. The horizon is low, with a row of trees. A church tower is off-center to the left. The church is surrounded by trees and buildings. A line of trees is on the right side. The sky has large, expressive clouds. A monochromatic palette of gray is used. A path winds through the scene, with two figures: one person working and another walking.
    Stoke-by-NeylandDavid Lucas, 1830Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 3, north wall

  1. Portrait of Charlotte and Sarah Carteret-Hardy, by Thomas Lawrence, 1801
    Portrait of Charlotte and Sarah Carteret-HardyThomas Lawrence, 1801Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art
  2. Lindisfarne Castle, Holy Island, Northumberland, by Thomas Girtin, 1796–97
    Lindisfarne Castle, Holy Island, NorthumberlandThomas Girtin, 1796–97Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
  3. The painting depicts an equestrian scene with people and horses in a green landscape. There are several people on horseback, and others standing by horses. Some people are also sitting in horse-drawn carriages. The horses are in a variety of colors, and the people wear formal clothing like suit jackets, top hats, vests, or colorful dresses. People fill the middle of the scene and the green hills that rise to the left, while a wide path is marked off on the right, bordered by fences. There are some tall trees around the area, with people gathering below them. In the distance, a large white building with columns and blue roofs can be seen. There is also a white tent partially behind a hill on the left. The sky above is blue and filled with white and gray clouds.
    Heaton Park RacesJohn Ferneley, 1829Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington

Section 3, south wall

  1. This is a drawing of a winged figure seated on a bird. The image depicts a figure with flowing robes, wings outstretched, holding an open book in one hand. The figure appears to be looking off to the side, with a serene expression. The lower part of the image includes a bird upon which the figure is seated. The bird's head is turned slightly upwards, following the direction in which the figure is gazing. The image is rendered in a warm, monochromatic palette. In the lower section of the image, there is some text, likely Latin.
    Saint John the EvangelistJohn Skippe, 1771Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington
  2. A work made of red chalk on cream laid paper.
    Self-PortraitJohn Flaxman, c. 1779Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago