View of Appledore, North Devon, from Instow Sands

This view of the seaside village of Appledore in Devon, largely unchanged today, serves as a record of Girtin’s unusual working method. He turned the translucent quality of watercolour to his advantage by building up the design in distinct layers, allowing each stage of his development of the composition to show through. Girtin’s approach flouted contemporary academic practice, which encouraged artists to disguise all evidence of their labour. The use of coarse paper adds to the rich effect.