THE] P I C T U R E S Q U E

I N T R O D U C T I O N

Out of all the books in his oeuvre, London Triumphant (LT) stands out. The drawings within are detailed, atmospheric and compelling. LT can be seen as a picturesque account of the city, its images are captivating and convey the city in a pleasant way. At the time of its publication in 1942, World War 2 had been ongoing for 8 years and would not cease for another 3 years. Sydney R. Jones describes the war-torn capital of the country within LT. The years are filled with blackout nights that have rendered the city in darkness and the atmosphere is equally low. It is no longer possible to experience the city as it once was as many locations have been permanently destroyed. S.R.J presents London as a picturesque location that exemplifies nobility and Englishness with the intention of instilling inspiration throughout the nation during the war.3

This dissertation will analyse the drawings within Sydney R. Jones’ book to ascertain if they are picturesque according to a set of criteria defined by picturesque theory and whether he uses The Picturesque as a tool to support the nation throughout wartime. I will be interrogating Picturesque theory concerning Pictures, Irregularity & Movement specifically.

[THE] P I C T U R E S Q U E

The term Picturesque was once considered to be a radical mixture of art and life, it began at the start of the 18th century when the language was taken from the activity of painting. Protagonists of the picturesque were Sir Uvedale Price (1747-1829), Richard Payne Knight (1751-1824) and Humphrey Repton (1752-1818), who all made considerable contributions to picturesque theory and within the 19th century, there then was an important development of the picturesque within Germany, Camillo Sitte published his book City Planning According to Artistic Principles and Heinrich Wölfflin (1864-1945) developed the theory behind the term malerisch.4 Within the 1940s the Townscape movement served as a new vessel for old picturesque ideas however, today there is a popular picturesque that is described in the Cambridge dictionary as“(especially of a place) attractive in appearance, especially in an old-fashioned way”5 and there is a more accurate, complex definition of the picturesque that I will define to provide a framework of how we will understand ‘The picturesque’ within this dissertation. The Picturesque can be defined as having the qualities of roughness, sudden variation and irregularity.6