Romantic Drawings and Watercolor Paintings

Thomas Theodor Heine was a central figure in German fin de siècle culture, best known as one of the leading illustrators of the satirical magazine Simplicissimus, where his sharply o...

This is an exclusive handprinted limited edition cyanotype. Lovely scene of a hidden pond in a Scandinavian forest. Details: + Title: Scandinavian Enchanted Forest + Year: 2026 + ...

Paul Victor Mathey (1844-1929) Portraits of his son Jacques writing in a deckchair pencil on paper 15 x 20 cm The back of the sheet, which is currently hidden by the frame, bears th...

In this luminous landscape study, Carl Oscar Borg captures the serene beauty of the New Mexican high desert, likely looking toward Mount Taylor, a sacred peak that rises above the su...

Richard Westall, R.A. (1765-1836) Venus signed and dated ‘R. Westall 1794’ (lower right) pencil and watercolour, with white heightening image 11 ⅞ x 15 ¼ in. (30.2 x 38.7 cm.) frame 22 ⅛ x 26 in. (56.3 x 66.1 cm.) Provenance: Private Collection, UK. Venus (1794) was produced during a highly creative and defining period of Richard Westall’s career and artistic development, when from 1790-95 the ambitious young artist was sharing a house at 57 Greek Street, Soho, with his friend Sir Thomas Lawrence, the future President of the Royal Academy. Whilst lodging together, Lawrence became an Associate of the Royal Academy in 1791, Westall the following year, and both were elected full-members in 1794 – the year Lawrence was appointed Painter-in-Ordinary to His Majesty King George III. Westall was to become Queen Victoria’s first Drawing Master, before her ascension to the throne. It was in this very year, 1794 - as the two young artists became Royal Academicians - that the present watercolour was executed, and it is exciting to speculate that Lawrence would have examined and given his thoughts on the work. Highly comparable to The Wallace Collection’s Nymph and cupids (c.1793, cat. P757), acquired by Francis Seymour-Conway (1777-1842), 3rd Marquess of Hertford, (who hung it in his bedroom), the mid-1790s saw Westall exhibiting and returning to similar subject-matter on a number of occasions. Two works with titles that could be applied to the present picture were exhibited at the Royal Academy, in 1794 (no. 341 Nymph and Cupids) and 1795 (no. 620, A Wood–nymph and Cupids). However, a print after the watercolour, engraved by F. Screen, entitles the piece Venus. Westall is regarded as a great virtuoso watercolourist, and Venus is evidence of the young artist’s mastery of the medium. Indeed, it is unusual to find a watercolour of comparable age so well preserved, and retaining such vibrancy - the superb condition providing an insight into his exceptional brushwork and use of colour. Venus languishes luxuriously on her woodland bed, the trunk of a tree resembling a curtain, while three winged putti play beside her, seeming to gesture to someone in the woods. Cupid draws back his bow and aims an arrow of love, perhaps about to pierce the heart of a hunting nobleman, or unsuspecting woodcutter. The striking contrast between the almost luminescent nymph, with the deep, rich, luxuriant forest, gives the glade an alluring sense of mystery – perhaps an allusion to the mysteries of the heart, a pre-occupation with Romanticism, central to the emerging thought of the time. Westall can be classified as one of the great Romantic artists, and even painted Lord Byron’s portrait...

Signed lower left 'C. Werner' for Carl Frederich Heinrich Werner (German, 1808-1894) and dated 1855. Watercolorist Carl Werner studied first with Veit Hanns Schnorr von Carolsfeld ...

Boats in Moonlight (1904) is a watercolor on paper measuring 25.5 × 55 cm (10 × 21.7 in). It depicts a Swedish coastal scene under a luminous moonlit sky., Along the quiet shoreline,...

Jules-Eugène Lenepveu (1819-1898) Portrait of a man in profile signed on the lower right Pencil and heightenings of white gouache on paper 19.5 x 13 cm Framed : 29 x 22.7 cm Jules-Eugène Lenepveu is of course particularly well known for his large-scale paintings, such as the one on the ceiling of the Paris Opera, but his work here is much more delicate and intimate. We recognise the artist's mastery of talent, but the play of textures, with its highlights of white that enliven and illuminate the model's face, is also very subtle. There's a particularly charming sense of life and impression of light. Jules-Eugène Lenepveu was born in Angers on 12 December 1819, on the site of the street that now bears his name, into a family of small shopkeepers. The painter showed a deep attachment to his family throughout his life through his correspondence and the many portraits of his relatives. He entered the drawing school in Angers in 1833, where he was a pupil of Jean-Michel Mercier. There he rubbed shoulders with the sculptor Ferdinand Taluet. He arrived in Paris in 1837 and entered the Beaux-Arts, where he was officially admitted to François-Édouard Picot's studio in 1838. He exhibited his work "L'Idylle" at the Salon of 1843 and, that same year, left for his first visit to Italy. He was awarded the Second Prix de Rome in 1843 for "Cincinnatus recevant les députés du Sénat" (Cincinnatus receiving the deputies of the Senate), then the First Prize in 1847 for "La Mort de Vitellius" (The Death of Vitellius). A resident at the Villa Médicis from 1848, he was surrounded by painters Alexandre Cabanel, Léon Benouville, Gustave Boulanger, Félix Barrias...

French School 19 th Century Portrait of a young man Signed (signature not deciphered) on the lower right Pencil, black chalk and heightenings of white and red chalks on paper Oval vi...

Rapidly executed with the tip of a brush, this wash bordering on abstraction seduced us with its great spontaneity. This (unsigned) study is a first thought for a small licentious ca...

Despite the tears and repairs, this remains an absolutely wonderful drawing, by a famous Southern artist. Many of you clicking on this are probably doing so because you know of Ellsworth Woodward, who with his brother William Woodward around the turn of the 20th century sparked an arts renaissance in the South, the arts and culture in general having been mostly moribund since the dispiriting defeat experienced in the Civil War. I won't bog you down with lots of detail here since all you have to do is Google his name to bring up a wealth of information about him. He is most famous for his leadership of the arts program at Newcomb College in New Orleans, and its famous Newcomb Pottery...

Signed lower left, 'R. Gallon' for Robert Gallon (English, 1845-1925) and painted circa 1880. This well-listed landscape and seascape painter maintained a studio in St John's Wood, ...

French Impressionist watercolour on paper view of a canal scene by Henri Clamen. There is a location annotation to the back of the paper. The painting is not signed but was acquired ...

Attributed to Carl Mattson (1886–1941) Sweden Stormy Sea with Lighthouse, 1925 signed and dated lower left watercolor on canvas unframed 73 × 81 cm (28.74 × 31.89 inches) framed 83...

Gustaf Tenggren (1896–1970) Sweden Trollkarlens urnyckel (The Sorcerer’s Clockwork Key), 1918 signed and dated lower right “G. Tenggren 1918” watercolour on paper unframed 25 × 23 ...

Many of you clicking on this drawing are probably doing so because you know of Ellsworth Woodward, who with his brother William Woodward around the turn of the 20th century sparked an arts renaissance in the South, the arts and culture in general having been mostly moribund since the dispiriting defeat experienced in the Civil War. I won't bog you down with lots of detail here since all you have to do is Google his name to bring up a wealth of information about him. He is most famous for his leadership of the arts program at Newcomb College in New Orleans, and its famous Newcomb Pottery...

Hilding Werner (1880–1944) Sweden Solnedgång (Sunset), 1897 watercolour on paper signed and dated lower left H. Werner 1897 Inscribed Solnedgång (“Sunset”) on the reverse. the shee...

Flamenco Dancer. Romantic French pastel portrait on paper of a Spanish beauty by Louis Fortuney. The work is signed bottom left, and presented in a very fine carved gilt rococo wood ...

In this expressive gouache study, Carl Oscar Borg captures the dramatic sweep of the Arizona highlands, where storm clouds gather over layered mesas and valleys bathed in shifting li...

A mid 20th century watercolour on paper of carnations in a bowl by French artist J Savigny. The painting is signed bottom right and presented in a period patinated and gilt wood and ...

We are delighted to present a stunning watercolor by the Swedish artist Albert Theodor Gellerstedt. This artwork, titled "Sickelsjö Trädgård" was created on June 8, 1883. The paintin...

Executed in 1911, just three years after Margherita Kronberg graduated from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, this early drawing portrays the artist’s younger brother, Staffan, dressed...

Auguste Legras (1817-1887) Portrait of a young man in profile, signed lower right Charcoal, red and white chalks on paper 45 x 31.5 cm Framed : 52 x 39 cm This particularly evocati...

Ella Waldenström (1863–1955) Sweden A Sewing Woman, 1900 watercolor on paper signed and dated E.W 23/2 1900 visible image 21 x 12 cm (8 ¼ x 4 ¾ in.) framed 29 x 20 cm (11 ½ x 7 ¾ ...

Graphite lead on paper Dimensions: 6 x 8 ¼ in. (15.4 x 21 cm) – framed 11 ¼ x 12 5/8 in. (28.5 x 33.2 cm) Studio sale stamp in the lower right corner (L. 838a) A certificate from th...

Egron Sellif Lundgren (1815–1875) Sweden Resting Dromedar, 1861 watercolour heightened with white unframed 21 x 29.2 cm (8 ¼ x 11 ½ in.) framed 40 x 48 cm (15 ¾ x 18 ⅞ in.) Provenance: Sale, Stockholm, Bukowskis, 12 December 1894, lot 42; Signe and Ernst Trygger (1857–1943), Villa Trygger, Stockholm. Ernst Trygger was Swedish Prime Minister (1923–24), Minister of Foreign Affairs (1928–30) and University Chancellor (1926–37); A Swedish private collection. Literature: Förteckning på oljemålningar, aquareller och handteckningar m.m. av Egron Lundgren utställda i Akademien för de fria konsterna, 1876, no. 259. Karl Asplund, Egron Lundgren, Vol. II, 1940, p. 40, note 1, p. 166. Exhibited: The Royal Academy, Egron Lundgren, 10 April 1876, no. 259. Sveriges Allmänna Konstförening, Memorial Exhibition, February 1915, no. 70, Hvilande kameler (owner Ernst Trygger). The Royal Academy, Svenska Akvareller (Swedish Watercolor Exhibition), 1925, no. 224, Vilande kameler (owner Signe Trygger). Essay: This delicate watercolour, executed during Lundgren’s first journey to Egypt in the winter of 1861–62, depicts a resting dromedary in the shade at Giza. Painted in transparent washes with touches of white gouache, the work captures the intense desert light and atmosphere with a remarkable immediacy. The reclining animal dominates the composition, rendered in warm ochres and browns against a cool, shadowy background, while highlights on its saddle and coat give the scene a subtle radiance. The quiet stillness of the subject reflects Lundgren’s sensitivity to the everyday motifs of the Orient, which he observed and painted directly on site. Lundgren travelled to Egypt in the company of two British artists, Frank Dillon (1823-1909) and George Price Boyce...

Paul Delvaux. Belgian ( b.1897 - d.1994 ). La Belle Anna, La Port De Cannes, 1930. Watercolor, Bodycolor & Pastel On Woven Paper. Signed & Dated 1930 Lower Left. Image size 15.7 inc...

"Funchal, Madeira Franciscans Convent" Antique Drawing on Paper Watkinson Delicate and detailed drawing of Funchal, Madeira by Hartford, Connecticut artist Edward Watkins Wells (181...

Pierre-Georges Jeanniot (1848–1934) Portrait of Henri Rochefort ready for a duel, Pencil on paper Signed and titled lower left 28 x 21 cm In good condition : the left and right borders irregularly cut In a modern cardboard mount : 45.5 x 35 cm The subject of this drawing is, in a way, almost as interesting as the artist who portrayed him in this duel pose. As a reminder, Henri Rochefort, whose full name was Victor Henri de Rochefort-Luçay, was born in Paris on January 31, 1831, and died in Aix-les-Bains on July 1, 1913. He was a French journalist, playwright, and politician. A great polemicist in the pages of his newspapers (La Lanterne, La Marseillaise, L'Intransigeant), he defended radical, even extremist political views (anticlerical, nationalist, pro-Commune, Boulangist, socialist, and anti-Dreyfusard), which earned him the nickname “the man of twenty duels and thirty trials” and convictions, notably to the prison in Nouméa, from which he managed to escape in 1874, a unique feat.. Pierre-Georges Jeanniot (1848–1934) was a Swiss-French Impressionist painter, designer, watercolorist, and engraver who was born in Geneva, Switzerland, and died in France. His work often depicts the modern life in Paris. He started out pursuing a military career, as an infantry officer (1866–1881). He was a lieutenant with the Twenty-third Infantry from 1868 to 1870. He fought in the Franco-Prussian War, was wounded at Rezonville, and was awarded the Légion d'Honneur. He subsequently served with the Ninety-fourth Infantry and the Seventy-third Infantry. At the time he left the army he held the rank of major, with the Chasseurs à Pieds. He never ceased drawing. He was known for the first time in 1872 at the art exhibition Salon de Paris, where he presented a watercolor painting called Intérieur de forêt. The next year he presented the painting Le Vernan à Nass-sous-Sainte-Anne. From then on he was a regular contributor to the Salon de Paris, where he presented new works with views of Toulouse, Paris, Troyes, the edges of the Seine, and some portraits. In 1881, after the army offered him the rank of commandant, he resigned to devote himself exclusively to painting. He took up residence in Paris. His works from this period represent mainly scenes of military life that allowed him to forge a reputation. Jeanniot established himself permanently in 1882 and obtained his first award the following year (medal third class of the Salon de Paris) with his les Flanqueurs (1883, Musée du Luxembourg). In 1886, La ligne de feu, souvenirs de la bataille de Rezonville, remembering the Battle of Mars-La-Tour (Museum of Pau), assured his notoriety. From then on, he started to show a certain artistic independence. He then mostly portrayed Parisian women during the "Belle Epoque", women in bathing suits...

Paul Gavarni (1804-1866) Portrait of a young man leaning on a Chair Signed lower right Black pencil on paper 23.7 x 17.6 cm In good condition Framed : 40 x 34 cm This fine portr...

A really charming, early 19th century portrait of a young maiden carrying a basket of flowers. The face is beautifully painted with a slight blush to her cheeks and striking touches ...

Gouache of a Shipwreck in a Storm with Gothic Ruins, Early 19th Century Technique: Gouache on paper Period: Early 19th century Description: This romantic painting depicts a dramatic ...

Drawing on paper, XIX century. Provenance: Nino Costa’s successors. Liberio Merolli, Rome. Private Collection. This fascinating drawing was realized by Nino Costa, an Italian landsca...

French Romantic School beginning of the 19th Century View of Ariccia, 1828 located and dated, "Ariccia 1828" on the lower right Pencil on paper 23 x 35...

Jean Auguste Dominique INGRES (Montauban 1780 – 1867 Paris) Apelles holding his palette and brushes Stumped pencil and white heightening on light brown laid paper, laid down on thin card 11 3/4 x 7 1/8 in 30 x 18 cm Signed lower left: “à Mr Visconti / Ingres” This drawing relates to Ingres’s painting The Apotheosis of Homer, completed in 1827 for the decoration of the Musée Charles X in the Louvre (Paintings Department, inv. 5417)—a composition which the artist later revisited in a drawing he worked on for over twenty years (the number of assembled historical figures nearly doubled in the meantime, increasing from forty-two to eighty-two), and which he only completed in 1865: Homer Deified (Louvre Museum, Department of Drawings, inv. RF 5273). It specifically depicts the figure of Apelles, placed on the left in both works, holding Raphael’s hand and presenting the epic Greek poet with a palette and brushes. In the Louvre painting...

CLAUD LOVAT FRASER (1890-1921) Fete Galante – Fan Design Signed and dated l.r.: C. LOVAT FRASER FECIT MAR 1918 Watercolour and pencil, shaped Framed 20 by 37.5 cm., 8 by 14 ¾ in. ...

Jean-Achille Benouville (1815-1891) Rome, View of the Forum, pencil on paper 28.5 x 37.5 cm framed 38.5 x 47.5 cm This drawing is characteristic of Romantic artists who, like Coro...

French Romantic school circa 1850 An antique Roman Atrium signed lower right (illegible) Ink, Ink wash and white gouache heightenings 20 x 13 cm Framed : 35.5 x 27 cm The signatu...

Sven Berlin (British, 1911 - 1999) Running Hare Black and brown ink on paper 15.3/4 x 22 in. (40 x 55.8 cm.)

19th Century French School, Studies of horses and small scenes, pencil on paper 14.5 x 21 cm Framed : 25.5 x 32.7 cm This study sheet, which brings together studies of horses and...

'White Irises' is a sophisticated subdued, ivory-cream with warm brown to bronze still life flower composition. The botanical watercolor created b...

Sorry for the reflections on the glass, but I didn't want to take this lovely frame apart. The close-ups are much better. This is a highly accomplished, superbly detailed watercolor of a the facade of a building in Rome, depicting Corinthian columns, a frieze and a free-standing tributary sculpture above. Image area itself is 10.5" x 6.25", framed size is 19.5" x 14". Matted and presented in a pretty antique wood frame that has some flaws from an apparently long history but is perfectly serviceable, as you can see. Exquisite detail, so hard to accomplish with watercolor. Came from august Houston...

Albert Paul Guilmet (1879-1922) Portrait of a man, signed upper left charcoal on paper 26.5 x 33,8 cm Framed : 43.5 x 52 cm Little is known about Abert Paul Guilmet, apart from th...

Francois Grenier de Saint Martin (1793-1867) A Young Lady on the beach, 1829, signed and dated on the lower left watercolor on paper 17 x 19.5 cm F...

Artist: Vivian Rydgren Title: Portrait of a Gentleman Year: 1948 Medium: Color pencil and pastel on paper, signed and dated l.r. Paper Size: 23 x 15.5 inches Framed: 37.5 x 29.5 inches

Jules Boilly (1796-1874) Portrait of a young man, in uniform, signed and dated 1837 on the lower left charcoal and heightenings of blue, red and white chalk on paper 27.5 x 21.5 cm Framed : 41.8 x 36 cm This drawing is a good illustration of Jules Boilly's own style, obviously very different from his father's realistic acuity. There is something softer, more velvety, lighter, and we can see it clearly in the way he renders the features of this young man. Julien-Léopold Boilly (30 August 1796 – 14 June 1874), also known as Jules Boilly, was a French artist noted for his album of lithographs Iconographie de l'Institut Royal de France (1820–1821) and his booklet Album de 73 portraits-charge aquarellés des membres de l'Institut (1820) containing watercolor caricatures...

Many of you clicking on this are probably doing so because you know of Ellsworth Woodward, who with his brother William Woodward around the turn of the 20th century sparked an arts renaissance in the South, the arts and culture in general having been mostly moribund since the dispiriting defeat experienced in the Civil War. I won't bog you down with lots of detail here since all you have to do is Google his name to bring up a wealth of information about him. He is most famous for his leadership of the arts program at Newcomb College in New Orleans, and its famous Newcomb Pottery...

Jules Noel (1810-1881) Landscape with a fisherman, Signed lower right Pencil on paper 27.8 x 44 cm Framed under glass : 43 x 59.5 cm We find in this drawing everything that makes...

French School 19th Century, Peasants and donkeys at the fountain, in Italy watercolor with heightenings of gouache on paper 27.5 x 34.5 cm No frame, no mat A charming, well-execut...

French school 19th century, An italian bandit, 1864, watercolor on paper On the reverse of the sheet (now under the back of the frame) an annotation, "Rome 1864" 25,5 x 21.5 cm (v...

This intimate watercolour depicts the artist’s children, Nils Tirén and Stina Tirén, they reading the Christmas annual Kring granen och brasan. The image served as the original illus...

Étude pour une chasse au lion by Eugene Delacroix (1789-1863) Catalogue raisonne reference: Alfred Robalt 733. Description: Eugene Delacroix was a famous French Romantic painter whose career is seen to this day as imperative in the shaping of the French Romantic school. He studied at the Lycee Louis-le-Grand and Lycee Pierre Corneille. He was inspired by Baroque painters like Peter Paul Rubens, incorporating the extravagance of early Flemish painting into his work. He was often seen as in direct opposition to the established French Neoclassical school which included artists like Ingres and David. Nevertheless, Delacroix maintained his career as an artist through history paintings and later political paintings such as "Liberty Leading the People...

Attribuetd to Eugène Devéria (1805-1865) La Famille heureuse (The Happy Family) Watercolor on paper 23 x 18 cm In quite good condition : a small tear i...

Many of you clicking on this are probably doing so because you know of Ellsworth Woodward, who with his brother William Woodward around the turn of the 20th century sparked an arts r...

Carl Axel Elvegård (1883–1962) Sweden Early Winter in Dalarna, 1923 signed and dated lower right Ax. Elvegård 1923 pastel and pencil on paper paper 48.5 × 61.5 cm (19.1 × 24.2 in) ...

Carl Oscar Borg (1879-1947) Swedish/American Inscription Rock, New Mexico gouache on card signed CARL OSCAR BORG. unframed: 12 x 17.5 cm (4 3/4 x 6 7/8 in) framed: 22 x 27 cm (8 5/...

Nell Brinkley was a pioneering woman illustrator for major national publications. She was famous for her "Brinkley Girl" and in the present work she exhibits a classic example. The m...

Disegno matita su carta, 45 x 68 cm; con cornice dorata 72 x 94 cm. La scena si svolge sulla costa, nel punto in cui il mare tempestoso lambisce la terraferma, che si presenta rocci...

Pair of 2 European cityscapes, each signed below the image, circa 1870 Each signed illegibly at the bottom right Size each: 38.5 x 27 cm Frame each: 53 x 41.2 cm Presumably cityscap...

Il disegno, sanguigna su carta, raffigura un uomo nudo con una specie di turbante sulla testa, preso di lato, seduto, in un'espressione di intensa sofferenza, come se stesse chiedend...