Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is a paint painting by John Le Conte. It is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Le Conte spent most of his career engraving, but late in life he switched gears and painted watercolors and ink drawings.
This untitled painting by John Le Conte hangs at the Victoria and Albert Museum. It’s a watercolor from 1861, showing Edinburgh’s Theatre Royal before changes were made. The work carries Le Conte’s signature and notes right on the page.
Le Conte spent most of his career engraving, but late in life he switched gears and painted watercolors and ink drawings. The Theatre Royal painting is one of the few pieces that show his brushwork instead of his engraver’s tools.
Check out the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Overview
This untitled watercolour painting, created in 1861 by John Le Conte, is held at the Victoria and Albert Museum. It depicts the Theatre Royal in Edinburgh before its demolition.
Subject & Meaning
The painting shows the Theatre Royal, Edinburgh's first theatre of that name, which operated from 1769 until its demolition in 1859. A placard advertises a performance by actor J.L. Toole as the Artful Dodger, referencing Toole's appearances in Edinburgh between 1853 and 1857.
History & Provenance
John Le Conte, primarily an engraver, produced this watercolour in 1861. The work is signed and dated by the artist and includes an inscription identifying the subject. Le Conte's career as a watercolour artist was relatively brief, occurring late in his life.
Artist & collection
Artist
John Le Conte carried a soft spot for old photographs and the way light slants through windows at dusk.
The Strand, with Somerset House and St Mary's Church
Untitled
Whitehall, with the Banqueting House
H Beard Print Collection
The Market Place, Salisbury
Street Scene
Print Collection
H Beard Print Collection
The Italian Opera House, Haymarket, prior to the fire of June 1789
Milsom Street in Bath
H Beard Print Collection
Old houses in Cockspur St, London