2-871-265 - Shirley Markham Collection/Heritage Images

The fair near the village church, c1780-1825. The absolute balance, arrangement, and rightness of the masses in shadow and light in relation to the line, with alternating weight and delicacy, make this homely scene an achievement of great beauty. The drawing here reproduced should be studied for spontaneity before we can appreciate Rowlandson's full intent. Each significant detail is suggested with simplicity or elaborateness as seemed fit'. From "The Watercolour Drawings of Thomas Rowlandson from the Albert H. Wiggin Collection in the Boston Public Library" with commentary by Arthur W. Heintzelman. [Watson-Guptill Publications, Inc., New York, 1947]