Underriver–The Golden Valley

John Linnell

ca. 1833 · Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over graphite · Drawings and Prints

While working as a successful portraitist, Linnell produced evocative landscapes for his own pleasure. Between 1825 and 1835 he was close to "The Ancients," a visionary group led by Samuel Palmer—Linnell’s protégé and later his son-in-law. The two often sketched together, and the present work was likely made during a summer visit to Palmer’s home at Shoreham in Kent. Setting aside his typically careful draftsmanship, Linnell adopted Palmer’s flamboyant cursive pen-and-ink style to evoke the rolling fields and hedgerows of the Weald of Kent. Cottage roofs that peek through trees at the base of the foreground hill belong to the village of Underriver. Striking shifts of scale and expressive penwork convey an almost pantheistic response to the English countryside.

Artist

John Linnell

Date

ca. 1833

Medium

Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over graphite

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of Jeffrey L. Berenson, 2014