William Trost Richards (American, 1833–1905). <em>Sketchbook of English Coastal Scenery</em>, 1879. Graphite on paper, some pages with added white chalk or watercolor on blue wove paper, 6 1/8 x 7 11/16 in. (15.6 x 19.5 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Edith Ballinger Price, 75.15.1 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 75.15.1_view1_PS2.jpg)

William Trost Richards (American, 1833–1905). Sketchbook of English Coastal Scenery, 1879. Graphite on paper, some pages with added white chalk or watercolor on blue wove paper, 6 1/8 x 7 11/16 in. (15.6 x 19.5 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Edith Ballinger Price, 75.15.1 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 75.15.1_view1_PS2.jpg)

DOWNLOAD

Sketchbook of English Coastal Scenery

William Trost Richards

American Art

Richards was a prolific artist who, as a leading member of the American Pre-Raphaelites, embraced the Ruskinian principle of truth to nature. Sketching outdoors played a significant role in his quest for accuracy of representation. Throughout his long career and extensive travels, he seems to have always carried a sketchbook with him, filling the pages with drawings of the places he encountered. The Brooklyn Museum owns more than twenty-five of Richards’s sketchbooks, including the ones on view here. Serving as pictorial diaries of his journeys, they also demonstrate the variety of his working methods, ranging from quickly rendered outlines to carefully modulated tonal compositions to finished color studies.

ARTIST William Trost Richards, American, 1833–1905

MEDIUM Graphite on paper, some pages with added white chalk or watercolor on blue wove paper

DATES 1879

DIMENSIONS 6 1/8 x 7 11/16 in. (15.6 x 19.5 cm) (show scale)

INSCRIPTIONS Page on display inscribed: "Portreath [?] / Sept. 11 '79"

COLLECTIONS American Art

ACCESSION NUMBER 75.15.1

CREDIT LINE Gift of Edith Ballinger Price

CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Sketchbook of 59 pages, containing primarily graphite drawings with some touches of chalk and one watercolor on blue paper. Landscape, seascape, townscape, coastal subjects in England. Inside front cover, landscape studies in graphite with touchings of white gouache p1 watercolor over graphite landscape of fields, trees, and coastline. inscribed at lower right, "[Portheam?] Sept 11' 79" p1verso house surrounded by trees p2 view from above of houses surrounded by trees p3 coastal scene with trees, inscribed lower right, "Mounts Bay Sept 11th" p4 trees, inscribed lower right "[S t Pruryan?] / Sept 11' 79" p5 small unfinished sketch at upper right p6 townscape, inscribed upper left "St [Bunyan?] / Sept 12.79"; and at lower center "St l" p7 coastal scene, inscribed lower right "Sept 12 79-" p8 townscape on coast, inscribed lower right "Sept 12.79." p9 coastal scene, grassy hill. inscribed lower right "Sept 12' 79" p10 loose sketch of grass and trees p10verso rocky cliffs, in graphite with touches of white chalk, inscribed lower right "near Logan Stone / Sept 12 79" p11 landscape p11verso, rocky hill/landscape p12 rocky coastal landscape, inscribed lower right "Logan Stone / Sept 12' 79" p12verso rock study p13 rocky coastal landscape, inscribed lower right "Logan Stone / Sept 12' 79" p13verso townscape with bell tower, inscribed lower right "St. [Levar?]" p14 incomplete line outline p14verso incomplete line outline p15 rocky coast p15verso rocky coastline, inscribed lower right "[Portle Cerreow?]" p16 coastal landscape in graphite with touches of white chalk. inscribed lower right "[Portle Kerreow?] / Sept 12' 1879" p17 rocks along coast, graphite sketch with touches of white chalk. Inscribed lower right "Joe [illegible illegible] / Sept 12' 79" p17 verso scribbles p18 rocks along coast p18verso rock study p19 rocks along coast p20 rocks along coast p21 rocks along coast p22 rocks along coast p23 rocky coastline, inscribed lower left "Sept 13. 79" p24 rocky coastline, inscribed lower right "Sept 14 79" p24verso forest interior p25 cliffs/coastline, almost illegible, smudged p25verso, cliffs/coastline, inscribed lower right "Mill Bay / Sept 14" p26 blank, except for smudges from p25verso p26verso, cliffs/coastline, inscribed lower center "Sept 14.79" p27 line outline, scribbles p27verso graphite with touches of white chalk, cliffs/coastline, inscribed lower right "mill bay Lands End / Sept 15' 79" p28 rocky coastline p28verso small line outline of cliffs on coastline p29 rocky coastline, inscribed lower left "Sept 15.79" p30 rock study, inscribed lower right, "Sept 15 79" p31 loosely rendered hilly landscape, probably along coast p31verso, almost illegible rock study p32 almost illegible rock study p33 two boats in foreground, townscape in background p33verso boat study at upper left; coastal scene in graphite with touches of white chalk. Town on crescent shaped coast line. Inscribed lower left, "[net?]" p34 blank p34verso, buildings with wagons/carriages in front p35 townscape on crescent shaped coast, with one boat. p25verso, loosely rendered townscape on coast, partly scribbled out? p26 blank p26verso interior; staircase; loosely rendered p27 line sketch of rocky landscape formation p27verso cliffs along coast, inscribed at center "[Newquay?] Sept 17'79" p28 loose sketch of hilly landscape along coast, inscribed lower right "[Newquay?] / [Town?] head / Sept 17 79" p28verso small sketch of boat p29 rocky coast line, in graphite with touches of white chalk. Inscribed at lower left, "Watergate bay / Sept 17 79" p29verso rocky coast line, in graphite with touches of white chalk. Inscribed at lower center "Watergate Bay Sept 17'79." p30 Rocky coastline p31 hills along coast line, inscribed lower right "watergate bay / Sept 17'79" p31verso graphite with touches of white chalk, rock studies p32verso rocky coastline, inscribed lower right "[Bedrallian?] Steps Sept 17" p33 rocky coastline, inscribed lower center "[Bedmillian?] Steps / Sept 17 79" p33verso rocky coastline, inscribed lower center, "[Bedmillian?] Steps Sept 17' 79" p34 blank p34verso loose sketch of coastline p35 blank p35verso rocky coastline, inscribed lower center "[Bedmilham?] Steps Sept 17' 79" p36 rock study, inscribed lower right "Sept 17' 79" p36verso scribble p37 rocky coast, inscribed lower right "[Bedmilham?] Steps Sept 17 79" p38 Rocky coast, inscribed lower right "[Bedmilham?] Steps / Sept 17, 79" p38verso rocky coast, inscribed lower center, "[Bedmilham?] Steps Sept 17'79" p39 blank p39verso rocky coast, in graphite with touches of white chalk, inscribed at lower center, "[Bedmilham?] Steps / Sept 17. 79" p40 rocky coast, inscribed lower right, "[Bedmilham?] Steps Sept 17.79" p41 tonal seascape in graphite with touches of white chalk, inscribed lower left, "Spet 17.79." p42 street scene, architectural study p43 pastoral scene of barn with horse and figures p43verso, illegible subject p44 study of a quarry or mill? p44verso seascape? p45 rocky coast p45verso, country house p46 rocky coast p46verso, loose landscape sketch p47 rocky coast, in graphite with touches of white chalk, inscribed lower left, "[Temple?]head / Sept 19.79." p48 rocky landscape p48verso rocky coast p49 rocky coast, with touches of white chalk p49verso loose sketch of rocky coast p50 loose sketch of cliffs along coast p50verso, house in the forest p51 illegible, scribbles p51verso, rocky coast p52 cliffs along coast p53 country house p53verso, houses; town?, trees and hills p54 blank p54verso, hills, with loosely rendered house at right p55 cliffs along coast p55verso rocky hill study p56 almost illegible sketch depicting hills alongside a river, possibly with boats. p56verso loose sketch of houses p57 loose sketch of houses p57verso, loose unfinished seascape p58 loose line outline of hills p58verso, line outlines of hills, boats with figures p59 loose, line outlines of boat, horizon lines, hills, waves p59verso, sketch of a man's face, some other lightly rendered landscapes. Inside back cover, loose illegible sketch, inscribed at upper center, "William T. Richards / care / J. S. [Mongamco?] Bankers / 22 Old Broad St / London E.C. / [illegible] / [illegible] / 70691"

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view

CAPTION William Trost Richards (American, 1833–1905). Sketchbook of English Coastal Scenery, 1879. Graphite on paper, some pages with added white chalk or watercolor on blue wove paper, 6 1/8 x 7 11/16 in. (15.6 x 19.5 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Edith Ballinger Price, 75.15.1 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 75.15.1_view1_PS2.jpg)

IMAGE overall, 75.15.1_view1_PS2.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2007

"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.

RIGHTS STATEMENT No known copyright restrictions

This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

RECORD COMPLETENESS

Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.