Dover Pier, Kent

1828–40

Not on view

Cox's mastery of watercolor is apparent in this small sheet. Brightening light at the the horizon indicates dawn, while a crowd gathered on a pier and distant sails characterize a busy port. Although tiny, the figures are distinguished by a various colors and shapes which contrast with long flat strokes used in the sky and water to suggest calm. Cox was a leader of the Birmingham school and one of the period’s significant watercolorists. He showed mainly at the Society of Painters in Watercolours in London. Initially influenced by Richard Parkes Bonington and John Varley, by the 1830s Cox was known for his distinctive, washy handling developed to depict English country subjects centered on wind and weather. A related subject, "Dover from the Sea," 1831 (Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery) with similarly handled washes, suggests a possible date for the present work.

Artwork Details

Overview

Secondary Titles

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Title: Dover Pier, Kent
Artist: David Cox (British, Birmingham 1783–1859 Harborne, near Birmingham)
Date: 1828–40
Medium: Watercolor and gouache (bodycolor) over graphite, with reductive techniques
Dimensions: Sheet: 5 7/8 × 9 3/16 in. (15 × 23.4 cm)
Classification: Drawings
Credit Line: Bequest of James David Draper, 2019
Object Number: 2021.15.22
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

By David Cox

In the same medium

From the same time and place

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A Piano Lesson, David Cox British, Watercolor over graphite — A Piano Lesson
David Cox
1800–1859

River Landscape in Wales, David Cox British, Watercolor with touches of gouache (bodycolor) over black chalk on rough paper pasted onto board — River Landscape in Wales
David Cox
ca. 1850

A Treatise on Landscape Painting and Effect in Watercolours: from the first rudiments to the finished picture: with examples in Outline, Effect, and Colouring

Multiple artists/makers

1814

St. Eustache, Paris, David Cox British, Watercolor and graphite — St. Eustache, Paris
David Cox
1829

Riders with sheep near an estuary, David Cox British, Watercolor — Riders with sheep near an estuary
David Cox
1830

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