Watkins, J. (McKechnie Section 2)

Recorded, as 'Watkin' (probably an error), by Jackson (The History of Silhouettes), also by Mills, who illustrates a silhouette of the Duke of Clarence, the future William IV. This silhouette, which is bronzed, appears to have been taken in c. 1828 and is therefore later than most of Watkins's documented work. It is quite possible that, after a period of years, Watkins adapted his style to the now fashionable technique of bronzing.

Jackson states that Watkins worked in Windsor and Bath. Though archivists at Windsor could find no trace of a visit by Watkins to the town, he may well have stayed there. Nevertheless, it is strange that no Royal portraits, except the silhouette of the Duke of Clarence, are recorded. That he was at one time in Bath is confirmed by a profile, owned by Mr Percy Higgs, which is inscribed beneath the bust-line, 'Watkins fecit/Bath.' The profile was apparently taken c. 1814-18, but a search of records in Bath has revealed no information about Watkins. The illustrated profiles of the Brooking family, however (Jackson illustrates four in The History of Silhouettes, one of these in her Dictionary), appear to have been taken much earlier, c. 1804-1806. The family hailed from Devon, which suggests that Watkins may have visited this county.

193, 949, 950

Two other illustrated silhouettes are from the series which Watkins painted of members of the Morgan family. This name, of course, suggests Welsh extraction, and possibly a visit by Watkins to Wales. But the date of the silhouettes

(c. 1806-08) precludes the possibility that the Morgans were the family of Baron Tredegar (whose family name was Morgan), as a search of the 1868 edition of Burke's Peerage confirms. We can only summarize by concluding that Watkins was an itinerant artist, working from c. 1804 until c. 1818 and, possibly, as late as c. 1828.

Although the illustrated silhouette of Nicholas Brooking is painted in a slightly different fashion from the other illustrated examples, it is most unlikely that, of three members of the same family, one should have been painted by a different artist of the name of Watkins, and it can therefore be assumed that all the illustrated examples are by the same hand.

Watkins painted his sitters' clothing in considerable detail in thinned black pigment, which sometimes appears greyish and sometimes brownish. The face is rendered in dead black, and there is no indication of the use of body colour or of gum arabic. Fine brush-work is shown on the shirt-frill worn by Nicholas Brooking, and on the collar worn by the son of Mary, Lady Morgan, and on the frill of his sister's dress. The necklace worn by the last-named is indicated entirely in pencil.

The general appearance of a silhouette by Watkins is attractive, although parts of the clothing of some of his sitters are rendered with coarse brush-work. Hair is well painted, the hair of Mary, Lady Morgan's daughter, being a notable example. I have seen five of the Morgan family silhouettes; all those of the children were painted in the same fashion, with a strong, plain sloping bust-line termination (with no shadow-line). The bust-line termination of the silhouette of Nicholas Brooking differs from these, being concave.

Watkins used the popular papier mâché frames. The silhouette of Mary, Lady Morgan (which is larger than the silhouettes of her children and is the only one which bears the family name) was housed in a papier mâché frame with a more impressive hanger than the hangers (of a plain star design) on the frames of the profiles of her children.

The silhouette of the Duke of Clarence differs in style from the other examples in several respects. Gold paint was added to show the Duke's hair, the brushwork on this part of the portrait being much less restrained than that on the illustrated example. The stock and shirt-collar show much less shading, and the portrait is terminated by a long, sloping bust-line like that on John's Dempsey's work, but, as the silhouette was taken in the late 1820s, the increased width of the fashionable sleeve makes the profile much wider at the base in any case. This profile has apparently been reframed.

No trade label has been recorded. Watkins signed his work beneath the bust-line. The silhouette of Nicholas Brooking is signed, in very small writing, 'By Watkins', in a shadow-line executed in a wash of thinned pigment. Another signature, probably used later, reads Watkins fecit', and is followed by some rough scrolls, filling the space beneath the bust-line; there is no shadow-line. Yet another signature, `Watkins fecit/Bath', has been noted above.

Ills. 193, 200, 949-955