.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Linnell remarked that it 'is not until one gets upon a common, near a forest, or into farm lands, that one begins to breath again', and having spent years as a fashionable portrait painter he was indeed drawn to the rural areas on the outskirts of London: to Bayswater, Hampstead and Finchley Common.
Late in his career, Linnell went back and dated many of his drawings, hence his uncertainty about the date of this study. During 1805 Linnell paid regular visits to Benjamin West who encouraged his use of black and white crayon marks to record quickly the fleeting natural effects he observed and the technique of the present drawing is similar to studies by Linnell dated 1810-1811 when he often visited places such as Paddington, Primrose Rose Hill and Hampstead, in North London.
Late in his career, Linnell went back and dated many of his drawings, hence his uncertainty about the date of this study. During 1805 Linnell paid regular visits to Benjamin West who encouraged his use of black and white crayon marks to record quickly the fleeting natural effects he observed and the technique of the present drawing is similar to studies by Linnell dated 1810-1811 when he often visited places such as Paddington, Primrose Rose Hill and Hampstead, in North London.