Race Ground (An Excursion to Brighthelmstone)

Thomas Rowlandson

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

One of a set of eight aquatints devoted to a journey from London to Brighthelmstone (Brighton), together with attractions of the seaside resort, this print represents a horse race held on a grass course near the sea, watched by spectators on foot, in carriages and in a covered observation stand at right. The related text tells us that, "The Race Ground is exceedingly well adapted to the purpose for which it was intended; an is one of the most beautifully situated spots in the world. The prospect is wonderfully extensive and magnificent. The races are in July.--There are always three fifties, besides several sweepstakes, matches &c. A handsome and convenient stands, sufficiently capacious to receive a great number of spectators, is erected on the course."

Drawings and Prints

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Department’s vast collection of works on paper comprises approximately 21,000 drawings, 1.2 million prints, and 12,000 illustrated books created in Europe and the Americas from about 1400 to the present day. Since its foundation in 1916, the Department has been committed to collecting a wide range of works on paper, which includes both pieces that are incredibly rare and lauded for their aesthetic appeal, as well as material that is more popular, functional, and ephemeral. The broad scope of the department’s collecting encourages questions of connoisseurship as well as those pertaining to function and context, and demonstrates the vital role that prints, drawings, and illustrated books have played throughout history.

Metropolitan Museum of Art