Lot 193: GEORGE BARRET RA (1732-1784)View of Tintern Abbey, Co. WexfordOil on canvas, 40 x 53cmProvenance: Purchased from Sabin Galleries, Cork Street, LondonSituated on the west shore of Bannow Bay in Co. Wexford, Tintern Abbey was one of the most power

GEORGE BARRET RA (1732-1784)View of Tintern Abbey, Co. WexfordOil on canvas, 40 x 53cmProvenance: Purchased from Sabin Galleries, Cork Street, LondonSituated on the west shore of Bannow Bay in Co. Wexford, Tintern Abbey was one of the most powerful Cistercian foundations in the South East until the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1536. Upon which in 1575 it was granted by Queen Elizabeth to Sir Anthony Colclough of Staffordshire and it remained within the Colclough family until 1959. The family made considerable extensions to the abbey to accommodate its new domestic function. They also demolished some outer buildings and used the stone to erect the neat bridge over the small tidal river, as seen in the background of Barret’s painting, located only short distance from the demesne. This inclusion of recognisable architectural features, common to Barret’s work, marked them out as studied compositions as distinct from arbitrary observations. A degree of order is applied to the ‘view’ in an attempt to enhance rather than fabricate the landscape’s innate qualities. That is not to say the work is without its elements of illusionism with Barret adding a consummate air of intensity through the stark cloud filled sky. Equally the staffage figures in the foreground add a degree of narrative embellishment to the scene. During the second-half of the eighteenth century wild landscapes and medieval ruined buildings came to be seen as fascinating and mysterious. Their echoes of romantic tales attracted tourists to these locations with British and Irish artists increasingly developing an appreciation and stylistic expression for their own environments rather than imitating Italianate or Dutch landscape traditions.

Good overall conditionRelinedSome overpainting, particularly to the foliage, tree and fure.Some overpainting on upper foliage to the right of the abbey