A sketch book containing penciled sketches by an unknown hand, of trees, castles, etc., a few with identifiers and dates.

TREES, LEWES Castle, Sussex, etc.. – Henry William BURGESS (c.1792-1839, publisher and possible artist, of 134 Sloane Street, Chelsea, London.)

A sketch book containing penciled sketches by an unknown hand, of trees, castles and other architectural subjects, a few with identifiers and dates. [probably Sussex and the south of England: watermarked date ‘1824’,  four drawings dated 1826]. Oblong quarto (7 ¼ x 10 1/2in; 184 x 267mm). 27 leaves, 24 of which have penciled drawings on them: Lewes Castle is the only location to be identified by the artist, some other drawings are dated.  Original half roan over marbled-paper covered boards, brass clasp, engraved label ‘H.W. Burgess. / No. 134 Sloane Street / Chelsea’ on upper outer corner of front pastedown (defective: spine largely lacking, covers detached, extremities worn, some damage to paper on covers).  

The assumption has been made that the engraved label is that of the retailor/publisher of the sketch book rather than the original owner. However, Stanford  have what sounds like a larger version of the present sketch book, with a similar label and a number of drawings, one of which is signed (see  https://searchworks.stanford.edu/view/8590873 ). So, there is a possibility that at least some of the drawings in the present album are by Burgess: the subjects certainly tie in with his best known work.

“Henry William Burgess (London, c. 1792–1839) was a British artist known particularly for his drawings of trees and landscapes. His medium was graphite and watercolour.

He was part of a well-known dynasty of painters who flourished in the 18th and 19th centuries. His father was the portrait-painter William Burgess (1749–1812), and his grandfather was Thomas Burgess (fl. 1766–1786). His brothers were the painters John Cart Burgess and Thomas Burgess. His son John-Bagnold Burgess (1830–1897) also became a successful painter.

Based in Chelsea like the rest of his family, between 1809 and 1839 Burgess exhibited many works at the Royal Academy, the Suffolk Street Gallery, and the New Water-Colour Society in London.

He became landscape painter to William IV of England in 1826. At least one of his drawings is still in the Royal Collection, Windsor Castle, a distant view, with deer and horse and cart. He was also drawing master at Charterhouse School.

In 1827 the book Eidodendron was published (J. Dickinson, London, 1827), a collection of sepia-printed lithographs on chine applique, realized by the lithographer Charles Joseph Hullmandel (1789–1850) after H.W. Burgess's drawings. The subtitle is: Views of the general Character and Appearance of Trees Foreign & Indigenous as connected with picturesque Scenery. It is a set of pastoral landscapes, each featuring different species of large trees. Rural folk going about their routines provide a sense of scale.

Burgess and Hullmandel were among the earliest practitioners of lithography in England, which in this series replicates the tonal variations of a sepia ink wash drawing very effectively. Burgess's attention to the qualities of light exhibited in these prints links him to his contemporaries John Constable and J. M. W. Turner.” (wikipedia)