The image shows a view from the forest floor looking up towards a rocky outcropping with tall trees. The horizon is not visible, as the scene is dominated by the vertical rise of the cliff and the tree canopy overhead. The brushwork in the painting includes detailed and loose, flowing brushstrokes capturing the textures of leaves and rocks. The sky and background are left somewhat undefined. The color palette features earthy tones with greens, browns, sandy yellows, and muted blues. The ground is covered with rocks and vegetation, leading to a cliff face adorned with climbing foliage. In the background, tree tops meet a cloudy sky.
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The image shows a view from the forest floor looking up towards a rocky outcropping with tall trees. The horizon is not visible, as the scene is dominated by the vertical rise of the cliff and the tree canopy overhead. The brushwork in the painting includes detailed and loose, flowing brushstrokes capturing the textures of leaves and rocks. The sky and background are left somewhat undefined. The color palette features earthy tones with greens, browns, sandy yellows, and muted blues. The ground is covered with rocks and vegetation, leading to a cliff face adorned with climbing foliage. In the background, tree tops meet a cloudy sky.

National Gallery of Art · Drawing

A Cliff Overhung with Trees

Ezekiel Barton

Date
early 19th century
Medium
watercolor over graphite on wove paper
Dimensions
sheet: 54 × 37.1 cm (21 1/4 × 14 5/8 in.) mount: 61.8 × 48.4 cm (24 5/16 × 19 1/16 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Accession number
2022.66.1
Credit line
Purchased as the Gift of Alexander M. and Judith W. Laughlin
Time span
1776 to 1800
Department
CG-E
Provenance

(album of Barton drawings from India, Spink 1979? GET CORRECT REFERENCE) (sale, Brettells Auctioneers, Newport, UK, 11 May 2021, no. 137); (Guy Peppiatt Fine Art, London); purchased 2022 by NGA.

NGA object ID 224241. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.