73 - Richard Wilson, RA,

Richard Wilson, RA, British 1713/14-1782- Pharos at Ravenna and Rimini (recto), with a further sketch of San Marino (verso); black chalk on paper, inscribed '...[?] at Ravenna' (upper left), 'Ph. at Rimini' (upper right), 'Pharos at Ravenna' (lower right), and 'S.M' (verso), 28.3 x 18.5 cm. Provenance: William Lock (1732-1810). with Stanhope Shelton Galleries, early 1980s. Prof. Ritchie Ovendale (1944-2022). Private Collection, UK. Note: Wilson travelled to Italy in 1750 and was based largely in Rome. During this period he concentrated on painting Italianate landscapes and scenes inspired by classical literature and the work of Claude Lorrain (1600-1682). Two sketchbooks of his Italian drawings survive, one is in the collection of the Paul Mellon Centre [D280–D280/33] and another in the Victoria and Albert Museum [E.3586-1922]. This present work is also recorded in the Paul Mellon archive [PA-F01819-0045]. William Lock was an amateur artist and collector. In 1749 he set out on the Grand Tour and in Venice he met Richard Wilson. The pair travelled together by carriage from Venice to Rome in 1751, and Lock retained many of the drawings Wilson made during the journey. The present work is likely one such example. He remained one of Wilson's most enthusiastic patrons throughout his life and went on to assemble an important collection of art that included Claude Lorrain's 'Seaport with the Embarkation of St Ursula', now in the National Gallery, London [NG30]. Another drawing from Lock's collection of Wilson's works, a view of the Tiber near Rome, sold at Christie's, New York on 1 February 2024, lot 166 ($2,520). We are grateful to Dr Paul Spencer-Longhurst for confirming the attribution to Wilson, and the present work will be included in his online catalogue raisonné.