Rowlandson [&] Pugin.

Covent Garden Market, Westminster Election.

11 x 9 inches

In this print we are immersed in all the excitement and chaos of an election hustings. The scene outside St. Paul's Church in the heart of Covent Garden is thronged with crowds shouting, jeering, sleeping and carousing: all enjoying the spectacle of a rowdy day out. Makeshift stands all but obscure the beautiful porticoed entrance of Inigo Jones's church and those lucky enough to live nearby lean out of windows to catch sight of the shenanigans.

As its title suggests, 'The Microcosm of London' was i1ntended to offer a snapshot of London life, both architecturally and socially, during the Regency. When he was contemplating the project, Ackermann approached two of the most skilled artists of the day who excelled in their fields. Augustus Pugin (father of Augustus Pugin the famous Gothic Revival architect) was well placed to draw the architectural detail but he was not adept at figurative work. For this Ackermann approached the prodigiously talented artist and caricaturist, Thomas Rowlandson. They both worked on the drawings and the copper plates and the results are a very pleasing combination of architectural accuracy enlivened by amusing figurative detail.