Two views on the river.

John Cleveley the Younger (1747-1786) came from a family of marine painters. Originally a caulker like his father, Clevely turned to painting after his fellow workers laughed at him for wearing gloves (Ayres). He developed his maritime experience under rather unusual circumstances. He acted as draughtsman to Sir Joseph Bank’s expedition to Iceland in 1772 and also to Constantine, 2nd Baron Mulgrave on his expedition to the North Pole the following year, alongside a young Horatio Nelson.

Francis Jukes (1745-1812) was an aquatint engraver. He initially worked as a topographical painter, before becoming one of the first British aquatint engravers. He is thought to have learnt the method from Paul Sandby and some of his first aquatints are after Sandby’s designs. Jukes mainly produced landscapes, illustrating the Rev. William Gilpin’s ‘Observations on the River Wye’ (1782). Unfortunately, one consequence of his pioneering work may have been illness caused by fumes from the acid he used in the aquatinting process.