2-723-941 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Bolton Abbey, c. late 1840s-1857. This moody, broadly painted watercolour on rough, brown paper is emblematic of Cox’s late style. Velvety grays and greens throughout the composition shift almost imperceptibly and streaks of blue wash, describing the distant hills and sky, are pierced by a sliver of brilliant yellow at the horizon. The ruined 12th-century priory is relegated to the background, nearly lost in the twilight.