Painting of a landscape showing a view along a river within a high-sided gorge, identified as Tivoli in Italy. A collection of buildings, bathed in warm sunlight, are perched upon a rocky bluff to the left. To the right of the foreground a broken tree protrudes into the scene. Painted by Joseph Wright of Derby (1734 - 1797). Oil on canvas in gilded frame.

Exhibitions:

Title: Joseph Wright of Derby: An Exhibition to Commemorate the Centenary of Derby Museums and Art Gallery
Venue: Derby Museum and Art Gallery
Dates: from 21/04/1979 to 21/07/1979
Title: Joseph Wright and the Lure of Italy
Venue: Derby Museum and Art Gallery
Dates: from 18/03/2016 to 12/06/2016

Publications

Title: Joseph Wright of Derby: Painter of Light
Sub-Title: Volume 1
Volume: 1
Published Place: London
Copyright: Benedict Nicolson, 1968
Published Year: 1968

Related People

Joseph Wright of Derby (Artist)
Display Date: British, 1734 - 1797
Nationality: British
Biography: Artist.

Italian Landscape - a view near Tivoli

Date: 1783-1786

Medium: Oil on canvas.

Object Type:	Painting
Dimensions:	Frame: 1108 × 1304 × 130 mm (43 5/8 × 51 5/16 × 5 1/8 in.) Support: 762 × 965 mm (30 × 38 in.)
Description:	Italian landscape, a view of Tivoli; Italy, with its breathtaking scenery and clear blue skies, made a lasting impression on Wright. After his return to England he increasingly turned towards landscape painting. This view, painted in Derby, many years after his return has an elegiac feel - it is essentially a distillation of Wright's memory of Tivoli.; Joseph Wright (1734 - 1797) View of Tivoli About 1783 - 86 Oil on canvas Tivoli, which is nestled amid the dramatic scenery of the Sabine Hills to the south of Rome, has remained a popular place of retreat since the days of the Roman Empire. Wright is likely to have visited Tivoli as an excursion during his lengthy stay in Rome, or en route to Naples in 1774. With the exception of a watercolour study of the falls below the hilltop town, this is one of just a few known surviving paintings of Tivoli by the artist. The warm glow of the evening sun, and carefully-placed tree to frame the scene, shares much in common with the Italian landscapes of earlier artists, in particular Claude Lorrain (1600 - 1682) and Richard Wilson (1714 - 1782), whose work Wright admired.
Provenance:	Offered Wright's posthumous sale, Christie’s 6 May 1801 (lot 50?), whereupon purchased by Thomas Borrow (later Borough) of Derby and later Chetwynd Park, Salop; by descent to Colonel John G. Burton Borough of Chetwynd Park, Salop; by whose widow it was donated to Derby Museums in 1961.
Viewing Status:	Contact Us
Item Ref:	1961-529