Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Source Description
Francis Towne spent a year painting the architectural wonders of Rome and its environs on what was to be his only trip to the Continent. On the journey back to England, he traveled over the Alps, visiting the Italian Lakes, crossing over the Splügen Pass into Switzerland, finally arriving in Geneva. His distinctive style, characterized by an austere simplicity of vision, found its fullest expression in his Alpine views, described by one scholar as "unquestionably among the greatest by any 18th-century artist of mountain scenery." Against the earth tones of the brooding cliffs, the crash of the waterfall is like a white explosion.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
170140
label
Waterfall between Chiavenna and Mount Splügen
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
170140
contentType
drawing
title
Waterfall between Chiavenna and Mount Splügen
description
Francis Towne spent a year painting the architectural wonders of Rome and its environs on what was to be his only trip to the Continent. On the journey back to England, he traveled over the Alps, visiting the Italian Lakes, crossing over the Splügen Pass into Switzerland, finally arriving in Geneva. His distinctive style, characterized by an austere simplicity of vision, found its fullest expression in his Alpine views, described by one scholar as "unquestionably among the greatest by any 18th-century artist of mountain scenery." Against the earth tones of the brooding cliffs, the crash of the waterfall is like a white explosion.
date
1784
citation
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q80078374
creators
57008
genreSpecific
Drawing
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Sheet: 47.3 x 56.8 cm (18 5/8 x 22 3/8 in.)
cul
England, 18th century
accession
2012.35
Source extras
tec
watercolor with graphite, point of brushwork, and selective glazing
tombstone
Waterfall between Chiavenna and Mount Splügen, 1784. Francis Towne (British, 1739/40–1816). Watercolor with graphite, point of brushwork, and selective glazing ; sheet: 47.3 x 56.8 cm (18 5/8 x 22 3/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund, 2012.35
collection
DR - British
inscriptions
inscription
signed and dated, in pen and brown ink, at lower left: Francis Towne / dell. 1784
didYouKnow
This drawing once belonged to Paul Oppé, one of Britain's most esteemed art historians and a legendary authority on English drawings.
citations
citation
Oppé, A. P. "Francis Towne, Landscape Painter." <em>Walpole Society</em> 8 (1920).
page_number
Mentioned: p. 122
citation
<em>Exhibition of Works from the Paul Oppé Collection; English Watercolours and Old Master Drawings</em>. Exh. Cat. London: Royal Academy, 1958.
page_number
Mentioned: no. 58
citation
Bury, Adrian. <em>Francis Towne: Lone Star of Water-Colour Painting</em>. London: C. Skilton, 1962.
page_number
Mentioned: pp. 88, 145
citation
Wilcox, Timothy. <em>Francis Towne</em>. Exh. Cat. London: Tate Gallery, 1997.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 133
citation
Johnson, Robert Flynn and Joseph R. Goldyne. <em>Judging by Appearance: Master Drawings from the Collection of Joseph and Deborah Goldyne</em>. Exh. Cat. San Francisco: Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, 2006.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: pp. 140-41, no. 62
citation
Lemonedes, Heather. <em>British Drawings: The Cleveland Museum of Art. </em>Exh. Cat. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2013.
page_number
Mentioned: pp. 36-37, 149, no. 8; Reproduced: p. 37
citation
Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine</em>. Vol. 53 no. 02, March/April 2013
page_number
Mentioned & reproduced: p. 18
creditline
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 08:44:30.645000
sourceId
170140
dept
Drawings
coll
DR - British
med
watercolor with graphite, point of brushwork, and selective glazing
creatorTags
male
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
9ba194764bc8aed6