Landscape with a wagon

The present watercolour would appear to date from early 1830s when Boys was sharing a studio with William Callow (1812-1908) in Paris, where he became acquainted with Richard Parkes Bonington (1802-1828). It is Boys' early work, when he was most under the influence of Bonington that is considered his greatest and at times almost indistinguishable from that of his mentor. He borrowed techniques from Bonington such as dragging washes of colour across the paper and scratching the paper with the stub of the brush to provide highlights.

An early watercolour by Boys, is The Collection of Monsieur and Madame Gérald Bauer; Christie's, London, 22 January 2003, lot 51, sold £31,070.