Capriccio, with a castle above a waterfall

The second son of William Adam (1689-1748), Robert Adam was a neo-classical architect and furniture designer who trained under his father, the foremost Scottish architect of the period. Already a competent draughtsman, in 1754 he embarked on the Grand Tour, spending five years in Italy studying architecture under Charles-Louis Clérisseau and Giovanni Battista Piranesi. On his return, he set up a practice in London with his brother James, becoming one of the most fashionable and successful architects in the country and having a profound effect on both Georgian life and the classical design of English country houses.
His drawings and watercolours, unlike his architectural plans, are highly romantic and picturesque capriccios showing castles and river gorges.