View of London with St. Paul’s in the Distance: Woman and Children with a Baby Carriage

Julius Caesar Ibbetson

1787 · Watercolor, pen and ink · Drawings and Prints

One of a pair, this watercolor portrays well-to-do women and children enjoying fine weather on a hill-top at Kilburn, northwest of London. Beyond the figures, cows screen a prospect punctuated by the dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral, with the river in the middle distance a tributary of the Thames that runs from Hampstead, through Kilburn down to Hyde Park. In this fine early example, Ibbeston's assured handling of line combines with delicate watercolors in a way that demonstrates the influence of Paul Sandby. A keen observer of contemporary life, the artist conveys English upper class contentment just before the outbreak of the French Revolution.

Artist

Julius Caesar Ibbetson

Date

1787

Medium

Watercolor, pen and ink

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Harry G. Sperling Fund, 2016