Artwork Page for Interior of a Cathedral

Details / Information for Interior of a Cathedral

Interior of a Cathedral

c. 1820s

Samuel Prout

(British, 1783–1852)
Culture
England, 19th century
Medium
gray and brown wash with point of brush and pen and brown ink with watercolor heightened with gouache
Support
Heavy, moderately textured cream wove paper
Measurements
Sheet: 43.3 x 30 cm (17 1/16 x 11 13/16 in.)
Credit Line
Bequest of James Parmelee 1940.560
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
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Did You Know?

Rather than showing a specific church, this drawing seems to depict an amalgamation of Gothic architecture, capturing a mood and not a particular place.

Description

Samuel Prout’s watercolors of picturesque views and architectural marvels of Italy, France, Germany, and Switzerland attracted a wide audience, helped inspire travel, and shaped the English perception of Continental Europe. The influential critic John Ruskin became a close friend, neighbor, and great supporter of the artist, declaring in the Art Journal in 1849 that no other artist expressed architectural detail in more "splendid accumulation" or "patient love" than Prout.
A vertically oriented wash and watercolor drawing depicts people with light skin tones gathering at the entrance of a stone cathedral. In the foreground, a woman kneels while a man walks toward the large, intricately carved archway. Stone statues of a man and a woman holding a child stand on decorative pedestals flanking the portal. Sunlight from the right illuminates the interior's vaulted aisles where smaller figures congregate in the distance.

Interior of a Cathedral

c. 1820s

Samuel Prout

(British, 1783–1852)
England, 19th century

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