A Gentleman Amateur

Our new collection of drawings by Exeter artist John White Abbott (1763–1851) is a tour de force from this gentleman amateur, who never sold a painting but whose oils were praised more highly those of his friend and teacher Francis Towne. These remarkably precise linear drawings show Abbott's masterful draughtsmanship and give an interesting insight into his study of the Old Masters–—which helped inform his predilection for classical composition and figures within his own landscapes.