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    300 years
    "Ford, Sir R." is linked to these Works
    of 27

    Homage before a Statue

    Homage before a Statue
    Homage before a Statue
    Homage before a Statue
    Private Collection, England / Photograph by John Hammond
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    Artist
    Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782)
    Title
    Homage before a Statue
    Date
    1754
    Medium
    Black chalk and stump on beige paper laid down enclosed in a thick ruled black chalk border
    Dimensions
    Metric: 114 x 134 mm
    Imperial: 4 1/2 x 5 1/4 in.
    Collection
    Private Collection, England
    Accession Number
    RF87
    Wilson Online Reference
    D281
    Description
    In the right foreground three robed figures make obeisance before a large statue of the seated Virgin and Child. Behind them to the left is a chain and stone post fence and beyond it a wooded area, while in the right background may be seen a large domed building, perhaps St Peter's, Rome.
    Exhibited
    Exeter 1946 (44); Kenwood 1974 (151); Conwy 2009 (6)
    Provenance
    William Lock of Norbury; his sale, Sotheby's, London 3-7 May 1821; Marianne Ford; thence by descent
    Signature/inscription
    Signed lower left below border: R.W.f.
    Dated lower right below border: 1754
    Related Drawings
    D286 Composition: Landscape with Figures on a Bridge, Private Collection, England
    Critical commentary
    Although the composition is almost certainly based on a scene in Rome, the church in the background bears only a superifical resemblance to St Peter's on the evidence of its dome. The sculpture seems to be a Madonna and Child but the exaggerated postures of the worshipping figures lend the image a note of satire. Close to D286 Composition: Landscape with Figures on a Bridge, Private Collection, England in technique, manner, presentation, dimensions and presumably date.
    Bibliography
    Ford 1951, p. 55, pl. 26; Walpole Society 1998-I, p. 72, RF87; Lord 2009, p. 50 no. 6

    Exhibitions

    • Conwy, Royal Cambrian Academy, 24 October - 23 December 2009
    • London, Kenwood House, Iveagh Bequest, 8 June - 27 August 1974
    • Exeter, Royal Albert Memorial Museum, 7 March - 5 April 1946

    Biographies

    • William Lock 'of Norbury' (1732-1810)
    • Sir Brinsley Ford (1908-1999)
    • Marianne Booth, Lady Ford (1767-1849)
    • Sir Richard Ford (1758-1806)

    Documents

    • Peter Lord, Richard Wilson. Life & Legacy
    • Brinsley Ford, The Drawings of Richard Wilson
    • Brinsley Ford and other authors, The Ford Collection
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