Giovanni Battista Lusieri

The overall condition of the work is very good – the colors are fresh and unfaded. There are a number of very tiny flecks – some white and some grey-brown – in the sky and landscape. These appear to have occurred where flaws in the paper were discolored or rubbed away, and were, in a few places, retouched. There are also a few small scrapes in the clouds at the right and in the sky center left, which have been carefully retouched, as well as some in the shrubbery along the upper left edge. At the lower left corner is a faint water stain and a retouched diagonal crease. There is some minor discoloration in the sky, which is visible in the illustration. None of these flaws impinge on the overall effect of the watercolor. The watercolor is laid onto a sturdy backing sheet and is matted, glazed and framed.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

We know very little about Lusieri's early life, but he was born in Rome around 1755 and moved to Naples in the early 1780s.  He was quickly recognized as an extremely talented vedutist and his studio became a destination for English aristocrats on the Grand Tour, whom he supplied with large and detailed views of Naples and Sicily.   In 1799, at the recommendation of Sir William Hamilton, Lusieri joined the Earl of Elgin on his Embassy to Constantinople.  He subsequently moved to Athens, where he remained as the Earl's agent until his death in 1821.  During those 22 years he completed only one watercolor.

This View of Lake Averno dates from Lusieri's early years in Naples.  Lake Averno (or Lago d'Averno) was an extremely famous and important site to the east of Naples.  It was formed in a volcanic crater and is roughly one mile (2 km) in circumference.  In Roman times it was thought to be the entrance to Hades and in the Aeneid Virgil describes Aneaas descending into the Underworld through a nearby cave.

The View of Lake Averno is unusual because there are two other versions of the subject.  One, from the collection of the Earl of Elgin, Broomhall, was sold at Sotheby's London, June 30, 1986, lot 108 and the other, from the Estate of Pauline Harrison, was sold at Doyle's, New York, October 22, 2008, lot 2029.  The major elements of the composition, including the foreground figures, are the same in all three, but the former Broomhall watercolor is somewhat wider and has only two figures in the right middleground rather than three.  It is probable that the present version is the first and the prototype for the others given its date of 1786 and the fact that it is the only one that is signed. 

During his own lifetime Lusieri was famous, not simply for the beauty of his views, but also for the painstaking way in which he created them.  He began by drawing the outlines for the entire composition in a hard pencil, sent specially to him from London.  He then began adding the watercolor, by his own account directly from nature, building it up in layers to achieve the richness and density that distinguishes his works.  He apparently worked out the figures separately and then incorporated them into the composition, for there are watercolors for the standing man with the hoe, his dog and the gesturing woman at the far right at Broomhall.¹

1.  See F. Spirito, Lusieri, Naples 2003, pp. 139,144 and 146, figs. 54a, 62 and 66.