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    Return to "London 1949" is linked to these Works 87 items
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    Dover Castle

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    Dover Castle
    Dover Castle
    Dover Castle
    National Museum Wales, Cardiff
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    Artist
    Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782)
    Title
    Dover Castle
    Date
    c.1746-47 (undated)
    Medium
    Oil on canvas
    Dimensions
    Metric: 90.7 x 117 cm
    Imperial: 35 3/4 x 46 1/8 in.
    Collection
    National Museum Wales, Cardiff. To license image, click here.
    Accession Number
    NMW A 66
    Wilson Online Reference
    P14B
    Description
    In the foreground is a steep hill, at the foot of which are figures; in the centre, there is a view over the roofs of the town and the bay to the castle on top of the cliffs in the background; there is shipping in the harbour. The sea is calm and the castle, while prominent, is obliquely lit and almost incidental to the composition; most of the town and port is in shadow. The only notable human drama is provided by a single ship clearing its guns in the port and an artist seated at his easel on a bank at the left.
    Exhibited
    A version - BI 1814 (126; 129 in 2nd ed. of catalogue); London 1925 (3 - View of Dover, lent Mr L.A. Harrison); Manchester 1925 (3); Birmingham 1948-49 (9); London 1949 (8); Thomas Agnew & Sons London, 1956, Some Pictures from the National Museum of Wales (30); Kenwood 1967 (29); Welsh Arts Council 1969 (4); Japan, Touring Exhibition, 1986-7 Masterpieces from the National Museum of Wales (7); Tercentenary 2014 (ex-cat)
    Provenance
    Anon sale, Christie's 23 May 1924 (77), bt Leggatt; L.A. Harrison; presented by a group of subscribers to the Museum, 1928
    Signature/inscription
    Unsigned; no inscription
    Techniques and materials
    According to Kate Lowry, the grey ground and choice of pigments are correct for Wilson's period. The most compelling evidence of authenticity is the X-ray image, which exhibits the clear difference in density between sky and foreground areas, typical of Wilson's landscapes.
    Labels
    On frame:
    [1] Chapman Brothers. Picture restorers, framers etc.
    [2] [Chalk:] 40.49
    [3] Richard Wilson 1969 cat. no. 4
    [4] [Square label]: 312
    [5] A very torn exhibition label
    [6] On backing board: e/No.26
    [7] On stretcher: Agnew's Galleries London 1956 | Cat. no. 30
    Subject
    Dover Castle, one of the largest in Britain, had been rebuilt in the 1180s when Henry II added a massive keep and concentric walls. Over time the defences were further enlarged and improved as befitted a fortress guarding the shortest crossing point from England to Europe. When this picture was painted new barracks had just been built within its walls.
    Related Prints
    John Sebastian Miller, View of Dover, engraving, published 8 April 1747
    Versions
    See 'Links' tab
    Related Works by Other Artists
    [1] Anonymous, View of Dover Castle, Walmer Castle, English Heritage Collection
    [2] George Lambert Dover Castle, 1735, Goodwood House and other versions
    [3] Arthur Nelson, An Extensive View of Dover, c. 1767, Dover Museum
    Critical commentary
    Wilson painted a number of landscapes before he went to Italy in 1750. This painting shows him following the careful topographical tradition learned from Netherlandish artists, with a remarkable sensitivity to light and air. The foreground figures of genteel tourists and labouring quarrymen together with details such as the rustic fencing and washing on a line may reflect the influence of Canaletto, who had arrived in London in May 1746. It has been argued by David Solkin that the figure of the artist at the lower left is painting rather than merely drawing, but this is unproven.
    Previous Cat/Ref Nos
    Old Accession Number:28.129
    Old Registration Number: 312
    Bibliography
    Smith 1828, p. 89; J.B. Manson: 'The Richard Wilson Exhibition at Millbank', Burlington Magazine, vol. 47, July 1925, pp. 38-39, pl. I; Grant 1926-47, I, p. 51, pl. 37; Bury 1947, pl. 20; WGC, p. 177, pl. 38a; Waterhouse 1953, pp. 174 & 179; D. Cooper, The Courtauld Collection 1954, pp. 184-85; Cardiff 1961, pp. 8-9; Barringer & Fairclough 2014, pp. 29, 48, 116-117
    Link to WG Constable Archive Record
    WGC/1/1/44
    More Information
    Dover Castle was described by Daniel Defoe in a A Tour through the whole Island of Great Britain (1724-27) as 'old, useless, decay'd and serves for little; but to give the title and honour of government to men of quality, with a salary, and sometimes to those who want one.' Nevertheless a castle on this site had stood fast against foreign invasion since the eleventh century and Wilson's composition suitably emphasises the guardianship of the castle over sea and land. Two views of Dover are recorded in the early literature. J.T. Smith, in his Life of Nollekens (p. 89), mentions a picture of Dover 'which Mr Nollekens also possessed, Mr Welch purchased it at a furniture sale, by Wilson's recommendation, assuring him that it was the best picture he painted' [P14].
    Condition/Conservation
    Relined. The grey ground and choice of pigments are correct for Wilson's period. An X-ray image demonstrates the clear difference in density between sky and foreground areas, typical of Wilson's landscapes. Infra-Red reflectography shows some masts and rigging drawn in but subsequently painted out. No changes are visible by X-ray but there is the characteristic contrast between the sky and foreground areas found in many of Wilson's landscapes.
    Updated by Compiler
    2020-01-02 00:00:00

    Work of Art

    Versions

    • Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782) View of Dover, Philip Mould & Company
    • Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782) A View of Dover (A View of Dover Castle), Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection, New Haven

    Exhibitions

    • Birmingham City Art Gallery, 17 November 1948 - 9 January 1949
    • London, Tate Gallery, 22 January - 14 March 1949
    • London, National Gallery, Millbank (Tate Gallery), 26 June - 30 September 1925
    • Flint, Wales, 1969
    • London, Kenwood House, Iveagh Bequest, Summer 1967
    • New Haven, Yale Center for British Art & Cardiff, Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales, 6 March - 29 October 2014

    Documents

    • William George Constable, Richard Wilson
    • Ellis Kirkham Waterhouse, Painting in Britain 1530-1790
    • Adrian Bury, Richard Wilson, R.A.: The Grand Classic
    • Tim Barringer and Oliver Fairclough, Pastures Green and dark satanic Mills: The British Passion for Landscape
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