In this jewel-like watercolour, that almost crackles and fizzes with light, colour and exquisite draughtsmanship, Bonington depicts an iconic view of Paris, his adopted home city. Painted in 1828, shortly before sudden illness cut his life so tragically short at the age of only twenty-six, Bonington has positioned himself on the Quai du Louvre, seemingly having just stepped off the pavement and into the wide thoroughfare.

The low viewpoint adds to the sense that we (the viewer) are part of the scene; horses and carriages clatter along, while figures, both elegantly dressed and less so, are seen enjoying a promenade or having stopped to quietly admire the view. There is much to see, including, from left to right, the Louvre itself, the Pont des Arts, and the Île de la Cité, with the Conciergerie and Notre-Dame, and finally, on the extreme right, the Institut de France.

A large-scale preparatory study, executed in chalks and showing the scene from the same viewpoint, survives at the Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery. Bonington's great friend, Eugène Delacroix, remembered in a letter written in November 1861, that towards the end of this life, Bonington had adopted the practice of sketching from a carriage, preferring to avoid being disturbed by interested passers-by.¹ The Birmingham drawing was likely made using this trick.

Also related to this magical watercolour is an oil painting by Bonington, showing a similar view, now in the collection of Tate Britain. In that work, which dates to circa 1827-8, Bonington elected to stand below the quai, on the very banks of the Seine.

1. S. Duffy, The Discovery of Paris, London 2013, p. 73