Eighteenth-Century Watercolours from the Royal Academy Collection

9 March—16 May 2010

In the Tennant Room

Francis Wheatley RA, Figures and Cattle by a Lake, 1795. Pencil and watercolour on paper. Photo © Royal Academy of Arts, London.

This display features watercolours by leading British artists of the eighteenth century including J. M. W. Turner, Paul Sandby and Michael ‘Angelo’ Rooker.

The works on display were originally part of a collection assembled by the architect John Yenn RA (1750 – 1821) who bought watercolours, prints and drawings from his friends and fellow artists. Yenn gravitated towards topographical scenes and the display includes impressive views of Durham Cathedral and Battle Abbey. He also shared in the late eighteenth-century enthusiasm for historic ruins, represented here by watercolours of Valle Crucis Abbey and Kenilworth Castle.

Opening times

Tuesday – Sunday, 10am – 6pm
Closed Monday
Free admission

Free curator’s talk:
'J. M. W. Turner and eighteenth-century watercolours'
Tuesday 6 April
3.30 pm in the Tennant Gallery
All welcome. No booking necessary.

The Tennant Gallery is one of the John Madejski Fine Rooms
The rest of this suite of magnificently-restored 18th-century rooms, displaying highlights from the Royal Academy’s collection, can be visited on free tours.

Related exhibition:

Paul Sandby RA (1731 – 1809): Picturing Britain, A Bicentenary Exhibition

• Royal Academy of Arts