Thomas Barker - Barker of Bath (British 1769-1847)

Artist: Thomas Barker (British 1769-1847) Known as Barker of Bath
Title: Water Carrier Taunton.
Medium: Pen, ink and wash on paper. Signed and titled.
Image Size: Height 18.2 cm x Width 13.5 cm. (Note: this item is not framed but is mated with acid-free board).
Condition: Good with minor even age toning to paper.
Provenance: Private Collection London.

About: Thomas Barker also known as Barker of Bath was an occasional exhibitor at the Royal Academy and the British Institution for almost fifty years, during which period he exhibited nearly one hundred pictures. He was a prolific artist and painted a wide range of subjects.

Barker of Bath focused on the everyday goings on of his surroundings whilst still referencing the traditions like in this drawing with the water carrier holding a symbolic interpretation throughout Western art, as a sign of strength, resilience and hard work, a possible reflection of self.

Barker would go on to use this drawing as the basis for his etching “Water Carrier Taunton”.