Alexander Nasmyth (1758-1840)

Almondell Bridge, situated on the River Almond, south west of Edinburgh, was in fact built to the painter's own design. He was commissioned to design the bridge by the Whig lawyer, Henry Erskine, in 1810, following the success of a bridge he had designed for the Earl of Selkirk two years earlier on the River Dee at Tongueland near Kirkcudbright.

Alexander Nasmyth is popularly known as the father of Scottish landscape painting. The present work was painted and exhibited in 1811, at a time when Nasmyth was particularly influenced by the river scenes of Jacob van Ruisdael; James Nasmyth recorded that his father and brother, Patrick Nasmyth, visited various fine collections of Dutch paintings in London at that time. Notably, Patrick had moved to London in 1810.