# James Burrell Smith artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/james-burrell-smith/
Profile generated: 2026-05-24T20:02:49.000Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Nationality: British
- Movements: Victorian landscape watercolour tradition
- Common media: watercolour, engraving

## About James Burrell Smith

James Burrell Smith (1822–1897) was a British watercolourist and landscape painter associated with the Victorian tradition of topographical and scenic watercolour art. Born in London, he moved to Alnwick, Northumberland in 1843 to study under the landscape painter Thomas Miles Richardson, whose influence shaped his focus on natural scenery. Smith travelled widely across Britain and continental Europe, producing views of rivers, coastlines, and rural landscapes. During the 1880s he also contributed engravings to The Illustrated London News. His work is documented in standard reference works including Bénézit's Dictionnaire, Mallalieu's Dictionary of British Watercolour Artists, and the Witt Checklist of Artists. Collectors most often encounter his watercolours of British and European landscape subjects at regional and national auction houses.

## Common works and media

The most commonly encountered works are watercolour landscapes on paper, typically depicting river scenes, coastal views, and rural British or European countryside. Subjects often include identifiable topographical locations in Northumberland, the Lake District, Scotland, and continental Europe. Smaller-format watercolours and studies appear alongside more ambitious exhibited works. Period engravings produced for The Illustrated London News represent a distinct category that also surfaces in the market.

## Market and appraisal context

James Burrell Smith's works appear regularly at auction, with over 250 recorded lots, primarily watercolour landscapes of British and European scenery. Valuation depends on condition of the paper support, the specificity and appeal of the location depicted, size, and the quality of the watercolour technique. Works with strong topographical interest or recognizable views tend to attract more competitive bidding. Signed or well-documented pieces carry a clear advantage. Engravings from The Illustrated London News exist as a separate category with different collecting appeal. Buyers should verify attribution carefully, as the name Smith is shared by several Victorian-era watercolourists.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine researched artist identity with auction records, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots when those records are available. For James Burrell Smith, identity data is supported by authority files at Getty ULAN, VIAF, Wikidata, and the RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History, along with entries in Bénézit, Mallalieu, and the Witt Checklist.

## Sources

- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q21456577
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Burrell_Smith
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500030918
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/295274796/
- RKD - Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/73443