The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 25, 2024

Bray Church Yard

Bray Church Yard

1807
(British, 1778–1842)
England, 19th century
watercolor and graphite
Sheet: 24.9 x 36.9 cm (9 13/16 x 14 1/2 in.)
Bequest of James Parmelee 1940.564
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Although rare, John Varley's early watercolors are considered his most inspired work.

Description

The inscription on the reverse of this drawing, "Bray Church Yard-1807," likely refers to St. Michael’s, the parish church in the village of Bray on the banks of the Thames in the county of Berkshire. The banks of the lower Thames Valley provided the subject matter for many of John Varley’s early watercolors. His pursuit of the picturesque led the artist to turn his back on London and its connotations of commerce and industry, focusing instead on the rural aspects of the scene.
  • 1912
    (sale, Victor G. Fischer Company Collection, Anderson Galleries, New York, February 19, 1912, no. 655)
    probably 1912-1931
    James Parmelee [1855-1931], Washington, DC, by descent to Alice Maury Parmelee, Washington, DC
    1931-1940
    Alice Maury Parmelee [1862-1940], Washington, DC, bequeathed to the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    1940-
    Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    Provenance Footnotes
    1 Misattributed to J.M.W. Turner in this sale.
  • Francis, Henry S. "The Bequest of James Parmelee: Department of Paintings." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 28, no. 2 (1941): 15-31. Mentioned: p. 17 (as J.M.W. Turner) www.jstor.org
    Lemonedes, Heather. British Drawings: The Cleveland Museum of Art. Exh. Cat. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2013. Mentioned: pp. 58-9 149, no. 18; Reproduced: p. 59
  • British Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art . The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 10-May 26, 2013).
    European Watercolors Through the 18th Century. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 14-March 22, 1964).
    The Silver Jubilee Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 23-September 28, 1941).
  • {{cite web|title=Bray Church Yard|url=false|author=John Varley|year=1807|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1940.564