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    The Valley of the Mawddach, with Cader Idris

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    The Valley of the Mawddach, with Cader Idris
    The Valley of the Mawddach, with Cader Idris
    The Valley of the Mawddach, with Cader Idris
    National Museum Wales, Cardiff
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    Artist
    Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782)
    Title
    The Valley of the Mawddach, with Cader Idris
    Date
    Undated
    Medium
    Oil on canvas
    Dimensions
    Metric: 60 x 75.5 cm
    Imperial: 23 5/8 x 29 3/4 in.
    Collection
    National Museum Wales, Cardiff. To license image, click here.
    Accession Number
    NMW A 2865
    Wilson Online Reference
    P179C
    Description
    The view is of the peaks of Mynydd Moel and Cader Idris from a point several miles to the north-east, near the banks of the River Mawddach in Merionethshire, North Wales. The town of Dolgellau is hidden by the hill on the right of the view and a house called Gelligemlyn is visible in the valley.
    Exhibited
    Hull 1936 (46 - View in North Wales); Arts Council 1947 (6 - View in Wales: Cader Idris)
    Provenance
    Douglas William Freshfield, Wych Cross Place, Forest Row, Sussex; Christie's London, 2 November 1934 (147 - A View in Wales, with a winding river and hills in the distance), bt Spink (£110.5.0.); with Spink & Son Ltd, 5,6,7, King Street, London S.W.1. (Plinlimmon and the River Wye); bt by National Art Collections Fund (£200) and presented to the National Museum of Wales, 1934
    Signature/inscription
    Unsigned; no inscription
    Subject
    The picture is one of several views that Wilson painted from this location, one of which he exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1774. The most imposing landmark is the summit of Mynydd Moel in the centre, and to its right lies Cader Idris, which contains the volcanic lake, Llyn Cau, depicted in P153. The mountain was traditionally the focus of numerous legends, supposedly the home of a monstrous giant and a Welsh seat of King Arthur. One of the factors likely to have prompted Wilson to paint this countryside, apart from its rugged beauty, was this mythological association, comparable with the classical legends of Italy.
    Versions
    See 'Links' tab
    Critical commentary
    This is one of the last of Wilson's great compositions. He must have been familiar from his youth with the landscape of the Mawddach Valley. However, when he painted it he was beginning to suffer from the alcoholism, which ended his career in obscurity and poverty. The three descending figures in the foreground provide a typical Wilsonian motif.
    Previous Cat/Ref Nos
    403
    Bibliography
    Burlington Magazine, December 1934 advertisement; WGC pp. 180-81, pl. 45a (version 2)
    Updated by Compiler
    2022-04-06 00:00:00

    Work of Art

    Versions

    • Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782) The Valley of the Mawddach, with Cader Idris beyond, Walker Art Gallery, National Museums Liverpool
    • Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782) The Valley of the Mawddach, with Cader Idris beyond, Manchester City Galleries
    • Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782) Cader Idris, with the Mawddach River, Cleveland Museum of Art

    Exhibitions

    • Hull, Ferens Art Gallery, November - December 1936
    • Travelling Exhibition, 4 August 1947 - 21 February 1948
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