Thomas Girtin - Writtle Church, Essex - Google Art Project

Thomas Girtin (1775–1802) was an English painter and etcher. A friend and rival of J. M. W. Turner, Girtin played a key role in establishing watercolor as a reputable art form. While still boys, Girtin and his friend J.M.W. Turner were employed to wash in skies for architectural drawings and coloring prints for a print-seller. Girtin made copies and sketches from the works of several artists, and in 1794 he began to exhibit at the Royal Academy. He went on numerous sketching tours, chiefly in the north of England, and founded a sketching club for young artists. During 1801–02 he visited Paris and produced a series of etchings of that city