(c) 2017 Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston

Alexander Nasmyth

Edinburgh, 1758 - 1840, Edinburgh

BiographyNasmyth, Alexander or Naysmith

https://proxy.bostonathenaeum.org:2319/10.1093/benz/9780199773787.article.B00128817
Published online: 31 October 2011

British, 18th – 19th century, male.

Born 9 September 1758, in Edinburgh; died 10 April 1840, in Edinburgh.

Painter, stage set designer, landscapist. Portraits, landscapes with figures, landscapes.

Alexander Nasmyth was the son of Michael Nasmyth, an architect and house builder behind much of Edinburgh's New Town. Alexander attended Edinburgh Academy while serving as an apprentice coachbuilder. While a student at the Academy, his talent was recognised by Allan Ramsay who took him on as an assistant in his London studio. In 1778 he returned to Edinburgh and in 1782 he travelled to Italy to study the great masters. Once back in Edinburgh he concentrated on society portraiture. His most notable portrait is of the poet Robert Burns who later became a close friend. In the 1890s Nasmyth abandoned portrait painting in order to devote himself to landscape painting. He was the first eminent Scottish artist to turn his hand to this genre and undertook a number of commissions from members of the landed gentry who wished to raise the profile of their estates.

Nasmyth's landscapes are informed by the work of Claude Lorraine, Nicolas Poussin and the Dutch masters of the 17th century. An accomplished draughtsman, he adopted neoclassical elements and romantic overtones without compromising the topographical accuracy in his landscapes. His depictions of the urban landscape are equally poetic, yet demonstrate his ability to faithfully represent the changing face of the city. In 1798 he opened an art school in his studio, encouraging his pupils to draw from nature. His precepts provided the basis for the Scottish landscape tradition, and indeed Sir David Wilkie considered him to be 'the founder of the Landscape Painting School of Scotland'. He also designed theatre sets for the Theatre Royal in Glasgow and Edinburgh, and worked as a landscape designer, an engineer and an architect.

Nasmyth was a founder member of the Society of Associated Artists of Edinburgh and an associate of the Royal Institute (from 1825) and an honorary member of the Royal Scottish Academy (from 1834). He was also a member of London's Royal Society of British Artists and of the British Institute (1801-1839).
Museum and Gallery Holdings

Aberdeen (AG and Mus.): New Aberdeen (c. 1817, oil on canvas); Old Aberdeen (c. 1808, oil on canvas); Lugar Water (1775-1799, oil on canvas)

Bristol: View of Bristol

Edinburgh (Nat. Gal. of Scotland): Tantallon Castle with the Bass Rock (c. 1816, oil on canvas); Culzean Castle, Ayrshire (brown ink, grey and brown wash/pencil/paper); Distant View of Stirling (1827)

Edinburgh (Nat. Gal. of Scotland, Print Room): Stirling Castle (pencil); Glen Gamoch, Renfrewshire (pencil); The Firth of Forth (pencil)

Edinburgh (Scottish National Portrait Gallery): Lady Honyman and her Family (c. 1790, oil on canvas)

Glasgow: Italian Landscape; On the Clyde

London (National Portrait Gal.): Robert Burns (c. 1821-1822, oil on canvas, replica)

Nottingham (Castle Museum and Art Gallery): Grasmere, Westmorland
Auction Records

London, 10 Dec 1909: View of Edinburgh from Carlton Hill, GBP 35

London, 17 June 1910: View of Coul, Rosshire, GBP 33

New York, 25 and 26 Jan 1911: Landscape, USD 180

London, 13 March 1911: Wooded Landscape, GBP 35

London, 8 April 1911: Wardrop and his Daughter, GBP 73

London, 4 May 1922: Edinburgh, GBP 115

London, 22 June 1928: Durham, View of the River, GBP 131

London, 19 Nov 1937: Windsor Castle, GBP 36

London, 9 Dec 1938: Edinburgh (drawing) GBP 28

London, 11 Dec 1942: Robert Burns Contemplating a Landscape, GBP 105

Paris, 5 May 1944: The Ferry, FRF 1,500

Paris, 6 and 7 Dec 1944: Landscape near Edinburgh (attributed) FRF 3,000

London, 16 May 1947: View of Edinburgh, GBP 78

London, 24 Feb 1960: Family Group, GBP 750

London, 20 March 1963: Patrick Miller and his Family, GBP 5,200

London, 18 March 1964: View of Edinburgh, GBP 2,100

London, 16 July 1965: River Landscape with Figures, Gns 1,400

London, 23 Nov 1966: Landscape (gouache) GBP 750

London, 15 March 1967: View of Edinburgh, GBP 4,700

London, 18 Nov 1970: The Falls of Clyde, GBP 3,300

London, 13 Dec 1972: Corehouse Linn, GBP 1,500

London, 27 June 1973: The Kinloch Family of Kair, GBP 5,000

London, 22 March 1974: River Landscape, GBP 1,500

London, 19 Nov 1976: The Kinloch Family of Kair (oil on canvas, 47 ? 72 ins/119.5 ? 183 cm) GBP 2,000

Edinburgh, 15 Nov 1977: Perthshire Landscape (oil on canvas, 17 ? 23? ins/43 ? 59 cm) GBP 3,200

London, 23 March 1979: Portrait of John Cockburn Ross (oil on canvas, 35 ? 27? ins/88.8 ? 69.2 cm) GBP 14,000

Auchterarder, 1 Sept 1981: The Ferry near Inver (oil on panel, 18 ? 24 ins/46 ? 61 cm) GBP 6,000

Auchterarder, 31 Aug 1982: A Bridge over a Scottish River (watercolour)

Auchterarder, 30 Aug 1983: Stirling Castle (oil on canvas, 26? ? 35 ins/68 ? 89 cm) GBP 5,500

London, 17 Nov 1983: View of Barksimming in the County of Ayrshire (watercolour heightened with white, oval, 14 ? 16½ ins/35.5 ? 42 cm) GBP 8,500

London, 12 March 1985: A View of the Town of Stirling on the River Forth (oil on canvas, 32 ? 45? ins/81 ? 115 cm) GBP 21,000

Edinburgh, 30 April 1986: Edinburgh from the North West (1822, oil on canvas, 13? ? 46 ins/33.8 ? 116.9 cm) GBP 24,000

Auchterarder, 1 Sept 1987: River Landscape (1822, oil on canvas, 22½ ? 28? ins/57 ? 72 cm) GBP 6,000

London, 29 Jan 1988: Ferryman Crossing a Mountain Lake with Travellers (oil on canvas, 18 ? 24 ins/45.7 ? 61 cm) GBP 1,100

London, 15 July 1988: Landscape with Figures and a Lake at Dusk (oil on canvas, 26? ? 34? ins/68 ? 88.3 cm) GBP 16,500

Edinburgh, 22 Nov 1988: Duneira, Perthshire, looking west towards Loch Earn (oil on canvas, 15 ? 20½ ins/38.2 ? 52 cm) GBP 15,000

Glasgow, 7 Feb 1989: Landscape with Figures and a River Bordered with Trees (oil on canvas, 18 ? 24 ins/46 ? 61 cm) GBP 6,600

London, 12 July 1989: View of London from the Private Gardens of the Earl of Cassilis, with Waterloo Bridge (1826, oil on canvas, 55 ? 82 ins/139.5 ? 208.5 cm) GBP 374,000

Perth, 28 Aug 1989: Wooded River Landscape (oil on canvas, 19 ? 27½ ins/48 ? 70 cm) GBP 8,250

Edinburgh, 22 Nov 1989: People Bathing beneath the Walls of Warwick Castle (oil on canvas, 27? ? 35? ins/69.2 ? 89.5 cm) GBP 15,400

South Queensferry, 1 May 1990: Near Ellen's Isle (oil on panel, 17½ ? 24 ins/44.5 ? 61 cm) GBP 17,600

Stockholm, 16 May 1990: River Landscape with Figures (oil on canvas, 17 ? 21? ins/43 ? 54 cm) SEK 19,000

Perth, 27 Aug 1990: Figures by a Cottage (oil on canvas, 9 ? 12 ins/23 ? 30.5 cm) GBP 2,200

London, 14 Nov 1990: River Landscape with a Castle in the Distance (oil on canvas, 37 ? 47 ins/94 ? 119.5 cm) GBP 12,100

Glasgow, 22 Nov 1990: River Landscape with Figures and Animals (oil on canvas, 18 ? 24 ins/45.7 ? 61 cm) GBP 8,250

London, 1 March 1991: Extensive River Landscape with Classical Ruins (oil on canvas, 24 ? 18 ins/61 ? 45.7 cm) GBP 3,520

London, 10 July 1991: Extensive Italian Landscape with Figures Dancing by a River (oil on canvas, 37? ? 49½ ins/96 ? 126 cm) GBP 11,000

Perth, 1 Sept 1992: The Washing Line (oil on panel, 8? ? 12 ins/22.5 ? 30.5 cm) GBP 2,420

London, 20 Nov 1992: View of Loch Trool in Galloway (oil on canvas, 33½ ? 51? ins/85 ? 130 cm) GBP 12,100

London, 15 Dec 1993: View of the Castle of Drumtochty in Kincardineshire (oil on canvas, 25? ? 37? ins/64.1 ? 94.6 cm) GBP 17,250

Glasgow, 1 Feb 1994: Around the Isle of Ellen (oil on panel, 18 ? 24 ins/45.5 ? 61 cm) GBP 7,820

London, 13 July 1994: The Falls of Clyde (oil on canvas, 32? ? 43 ins/82 ? 109.5 cm) GBP 22,425

Edinburgh, 23 May 1996: The River Earn near Comrie in Perthshire (oil on canvas, 26 ? 34? ins/66 ? 87 cm) GBP 12,650

Perth, 26 Aug 1996: Edinburgh (oil on canvas, 18 ? 24 ins/46 ? 61 cm) GBP 19,550

Auchterarder, 26 Aug 1997: The Falls of Tummel (oil on canvas, 17? ? 23½ ins/44 ? 60 cm) GBP 9,200

Edinburgh, 26 Nov 1997: Figures by a Cottage in a Mountainous Landscape (oil on canvas, 18 ? 24 ins/45.7 ? 61 cm) GBP 7,130

Norwalk, 3 Jan 1999: Extensive Landscape with Figures (oil on canvas, 28 ? 34 ins/71 ? 86 cm) USD 16,000

London, 28 Oct 1999: Lake Landscape, Lake Geneva (oil on canvas, 18 ? 24 ins/46 ? 61 cm) GBP 5,000

Paris, 30 June 2000: Landscape with Ruined Aqueduct and River (oil on canvas, 18 ? 25 ins/45 ? 63 cm) FRF 65,000

London, 30 Aug 2000: St Bernard's Well, Water of Leith (oil on canvas, 18 ? 24 ins/46 ? 61 cm) GBP 4,800

London, 1 Nov 2001: Falls of Clyde, with Figures (oil on canvas, 39 ? 48 ins/98 ? 121 cm) GBP 50,000

London, 1 Nov 2001: Tantallon Castle, East Lothian (1811, oil on canvas, 33 ? 47 ins/84 ? 120 cm) GBP 50,000

London, 31 Oct 2002: View of Dunnottar Castle, with Figures on a Beach, and Ship on the Rocks (oil on panel, 18 ? 24 ins/46 ? 61 cm) GBP 6,000

London, 26 Nov 2002: View of Durham from North-East with Cathedral, Castle and River Wear (1809, oil on canvas, 27 ? 35 ins/69 ? 89 cm) GBP 50,000

London, 17 June 2003: Prospect of London, Seen from the Earl of Cassillis's Privy Garden (oil on canvas, 55 ? 82 ins/139 ? 208 cm) GBP 400,000

London, 30 Oct 2003: View of Loch Tay with Kenmore Church and Bridge (1810, oil on canvas, 35 ? 48 ins/88 ? 121 cm) GBP 26,000

Antwerp, 25 May 2004: Mountain Landscape (oil on canvas, 28 ? 35 ins/70 ? 90 cm) EUR 13,000

Edinburgh, 28 May 2004: St Anthony's Chapel, Arthur's Seat (oil on panel, 11 ? 16 ins/28 ? 40 cm) GBP 4,000
Bibliography

Skinner, B.: ‘Nasmyth Revalued’ in Scottish Art Review, vol 10 no. 3, 1966.
Kemp, M.: ‘Alexander Nasmyth and the Style of Graphic Eloquence’ in Connoisseur, no. 173, 1970.
Johnson, Oscar and Peter: The Nasmyth Family of Painters, exhibition catalogue, London, 1974.
Irwin, D. and : Scottish Painters at Home and Abroad, London, 1975.
Johnson, P./Money, E.: The Nasmyth Family of Painters, Leigh on Sea, 1977.
Cooksey, : Alexander Nasmyth, 1758-1840, University of St Andrews, Crawford Centre, St Andrews, 1979.
Cooksey, J.C.B.: Alexander Nasmyth H.R.S.A., 1758-1840: A Man of the Scottish Renaissance, Haddington, 1991.

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