Stephanie Roberts, Senior Curator of Historic Art at Amgueddfa Cymru says:
“These are wonderful paintings by an artist whose personal vision was ahead of his time. Many of his early oil sketches of Wales are lost to us, after they were stored in a damp cellar when he moved to Italy. These two new discoveries are an exciting new addition to our Welsh landscapes collection, by one of Wales' best-loved historic artists.”
The two oil sketches, Welsh Landscape with Lead Mines, and View on the Wye were previously in private collections, and have only recently come to public attention. They were extensively researched by art dealer Miles Wynn Cato, and the attribution and probable dates were confirmed by Greg Smith, a pre-eminent authority on Thomas Jones and co-editor of Amgueddfa Cymru’s Thomas Jones (1742-1803): An Artist Rediscovered (2003).
They were purchased for Amgueddfa Cymru’s collection earlier this year using kindly donated to Amgueddfa Cymru as part of a legacy gift, and arrived at National Museum Cardiff just before the national lockdown. They are currently undergoing conservation treatment to prepare them for future display.