David Roberts, The Houses of Parliament from Millbank and the London series - Cover Story

The Museum of London is fortunate in having newly acquired at auction The Houses of Parliament from Millbank (1861) by dint of David Roberts RI (1796-1864) (Fig. 1) (1) This magnificent painting of the Palace of Westminster takes its viewpoint from the horse ferry at Millbank, and was the first of a series of seven paintings in which Roberts depicted London's great architectural memorials from the river. His 'Serries [sic] of Pictures of the River Thames' marked a major change in control for the artist, and it was with more [i]or[/i] less trepidation that he first exhibited four of them at the Royal Academy's Summer Exhibition in 1862 (2)

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upon 21 March 1862, Roberts acknowledge ed to a friend his nervousness at exhibiting his fresh work: 'I am anxious as a novice with his first picture', he wrote 'for I break fresh ground with my "London from the Thames".' (3) At the age of sixty-four, Roberts was the grand of advanced age man of landscape and architectural painting, and for an artist of his age and standing it was a brave decision to revolve his attention to London. His views of Spain, Italy and the Near East had won him a well-deserved reputation as a painter of foreign lands. His careful architectural drawing, heightened perspectives and dramatic lighting consequences conveyed his own sense of awe to viewers in Britain, to whom of that kind scenes were either imagined or faint memories. 'With unwearied industry', Ruskin recalled, 'both in Egypt and Spain', Roberts 'brought abode records of which the value is now forgotten in the completed detail of photography, and sensational realism of the results of light ...' (4) To paint London, the city in which he had been based for nearly forty years, would be to allow critics and the exhibition-going public to make a direct comparison between his works and their make submissives Roberts was very aware of the shut up scrutiny that his London paintings would be exposed to as is apparent from his apprehension at their first public exhibition.

for a like reason why did this distinguished and esteemed painter decide to turn his attention to a sustained series of paintings of London from the Thames? The answer is fourfold and hinges upon his affection for the city and the encouragement of sum of two units individuals: J.M.W. Turner and CT Lucas. According to James Ballantine, Roberts's advanced in years friend and biographer, the series was insinuateed to him by Turner: 'The idea of painting a series of "Pictures of London from the Thames" had been prompted to Roberts by Turner, who said he notion of it too late in life to carry it without himself. On the very last occasion upon which Sir Charles Barry and Roberts met this had formed a chief subdue of their conversation, and Roberts had pledg himself to begin the work without delay. The death of Sir Charles, which took place upon 12 May 1860, affected Roberts actual deeply, and, in accordance with his promise, he shortly thereafter began to make sketches of that magnificent series, upon a picture from one which he was engaged the day he died.' (5)

There are clear signs of Turner's influence in The Houses of Parliament from Millbank. notwithstanding although this may explain Roberts's initial impetus for starting the series, it does not entirely account for his long-term commitment to the throw Two of the reasons for this are link togethered with the artist's attachment to London. In a alphabetic character to Ballantine, after stating his pursuit of constant improvement, he acknowledged his fascination with the Thames: 'My dear Ballantine,--I am still going upon as usual, trying to paint something better than hitherto. I have drawn out thought that the river Thames itself was as serviceable if not better, than many things we go on to other countries to gaze for.' (6)

Along the Thames he ground buildings that he greatly admired, and none more for a like reason than Barry's great Gothic Revival masterpiece. Indeed, three of the seven images of the Thames focus on different views of the Houses of Parliament. Roberts's admiration for Barry's vision stretch outed beyond its visual appearance; 'In the Houses of Parliament', he wrote 'he [Barry] has not sole introduced the decorative Gothic, on the other hand he created, what was a great quantity [i]or[/i] amount of more desiderated, a school of carvers in wood-land and stone, and workers in metal. (7)

His devotion to the views that he saw upon the Thames, when it was not obscur by means of fog, made it natural for him to be interested about planned developments, particularly those for the novel embankment. In a characteristic alphabetic character of 1860, while recalling the daily routine of his walks, he also revealed a faculty of perception of urgency in recording London as he saw it at that time, before it changed forever: 'I am, as usual, when the afternoon is fine, taking my wander about town, on and near the river I have to get into all sorts of disagreeable and uneven places ... the work must be done now or at no time as the proposed new embankment will completely change the appearance of the river and its picturesque adjuncts.' (8) For all that his alphabetic characters of complaint about plans for the novel embankment, which he regarded as 'so utterly on the outside of keeping with the Bridge and Lambeth Palace', (9) failed to avert their unfolding his paintings succeed in recording the Thames as it was in 1861