Forge Valley near Scarborough

by-nc

Maker

(artist)
1751-1821

Title

Forge Valley near Scarborough

Date of Production

11 February 1782

Medium

Pen and black ink, ink wash and watercolour over traces of graphite on laid paper, laid down on a secondary support with a pen and wash border

Dimensions

Height: 27 cm
Width: 44.7 cm

Object Number

D.2026.MB.5

Mode of Acquisition

Michael Broughton, gift, 2026

Credit

Courtauld Gallery, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust). Michael Broughton bequest, 2026

Label Text

Using shades of grey and sparing touches of colour, Harriet Lister captures the pearly quality of cloud-shadowed sunlight falling on the slopes of the Forge Valley in her native North Yorkshire. The flow of the river Derwent between the wooded hills contributes to the somewhat unsettled atmosphere.

Lister exhibited this drawing at the Royal Academy, which was then based in Somerset House, in 1784. The only daughter of a wealthy York family, little is known of Lister’s training, but she was clearly an accomplished artist.

Inscriptions

Inscription: Inscribed, secondary support, verso, "19" (upper left, graphite, circled); "Forge Valley near Scarbro' / (from Mrs H.G.'s Sketch)" (upper left, brown ink); "HL. Feb. 11 1782 -" (lower left, brown ink, by the artist); "H. Lister" (lower centre, graphite, by the artist; [inscription too faint to decipher] (lower right, graphite). Historic mount (now removed), inner recto: lower right, graphite: "MF".

Provenance

Sworders, London, 25 July 2006, lot 802; Michael Broughton (1944-2026), Watford; Michael Broughton bequest, 2026

Exhibition History

A View of One's Own, Landscapes by British Women Artists, 1760-1860, Courtauld Gallery, London, 28/01/2026-20/05/2026

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