The British have for the last 250 years excelled at the art of watercolour painting. No other country has produced so many outstanding artists in this medium.

The British Watercolour School had its origins in the latter half of the Eighteenth Century, with topographical drawings often made by British travellers on the Grand Tour or to provide accurate records for the owners of country estates. From these beginnings a more romantic and imaginative style developed; the period from 1800 to 1850 has been called the golden age of British watercolour. A defining moment was in 1804 when the Old Watercolour Society was formed, holding annual exhibitions to cater for the new buying public. The early members of the Society, among them Samuel Prout, John Varley, David Cox and Peter de Wint, are some of the finest watercolour artists England has produced. They were contemporaries of J.M.W.Turner, Thomas Girtin and John Sell Cotman, the latter working in Norwich – the remarkable flowering of artistic talent which happened at this time was not confined to London. Bristol, as well as Norwich, was an important centre and produced many fine painters.

Later in the century the pure landscape tradition of the early watercolour artists gave way to a more sentimental and idealised approach. A few painters, however, carried the naturalistic style of David Cox and Peter de Wint into the High Victorian age.

Prices for early Nineteenth century watercolours today compare favourably with those given for later works. Twenty years ago Peter de Wint commanded far higher prices than the later Victorian artist Helen Allingham: today you can buy a fine de Wint for under £10,000 whereas you would be hard pressed to find one of Helen Allingham’s cottages for three times this sum. It is interesting to note that in the late Nineteenth century watercolours by artists such as John Varley and Peter de Wint were selling for around £2,000, which in today’s terms would be at least £40,000.

Caroline Gee 2009