Richard Parkes Bonington (Arnold, near Nottingham 1802-1828 London)

Dated by Patrick Noon to late 1823 or early 1824, this drawing show the adept use of wet-on-wet washes which is typical of Bonington's work at this date. It is one of a series of brown wash drawings of shipping on the Normandy coast, often at anchor or in harbor. By 1823, Bonington's watercolors were popular with dealers, publishers and collectors, and he was employed to execute plates for aquatints for Jean-Frédéric d'Ostervald's Excursions sur les côtes et dans les ports de France de Dunkerque au Havre.