John Richard Coke Smyth British, 1808-1882

Entrance to Toronto by John Richard Coke Smyth (1808-1882) features the steamer Cobourg passing the blockhouse at Gibraltar Point, located on the west side of Toronto Island. Painted circa 1838, this 15 x 23.25 inch watercolour on paper is protected under museum glass and is one of the oldest pieces in the Rookleys collection. Coke Smyth uses a limited palette of predominantly blue and grey with accents of red and yellow to portray a cloudy day at Hanlan’s Point. Large washes are combined with fine detail to draw the viewer into the piece.

Entrance to Toronto was featured in the 1842 publication, Sketches in the Canadas and an almost identical piece was sold in October, 1969 at Sotheby’s for over $7000, which is equivalent to an astonishing $57,000 in today’s market.

John Richard Coke Smyth was a British artist and world traveler who is best known for his watercolour paintings of Canada. He came to Canada originally because he was hired by Lord Durham, the new Governor General of British North America, to teach his daughters how to draw.