A Trout Stream
- Artist: Philip Reinagle
- Date: about 1810
- Medium: Oil on paper laid on canvas
- Museum: The National Gallery
- Collection record: The National Gallery website
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About this artwork
This is "A Trout Stream" by Philip Reinagle, painted in about 1810. This work showcases the artist's return to Britain from the Continent early in the 19th century. You can see a swift-moving shallow stream with water breaking over rocks, which was actually advice given to Reinagle by the artist Pierre-Henri de Valenciennes. According to Valenciennes, painting such streams helps sharpen an artist's eye to the visual effects of movement. The style and technique used here are characteristic of the time period, and it's interesting to note how the composition guides the viewer's attention through the dynamic movement of water.
See it in person
A Trout Stream hangs in The National Gallery on Trafalgar Square, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
