- 97
Cornelius Varley
Estimate
6,000 - 9,000 USD
bidding is closed
Description
- Cornelius Varley
- Distant Lightning-Twilight
- Signed Cornelius Varley Delt lower left and inscribed with the title Distant Lightning--Twilight lower left and center
- Pen and gray ink with wash over pencil on wove paper
- 5 5/8 x 7 3/8 inches
Provenance
Andrew Wyld, London
Acquired from the above, 2008
Acquired from the above, 2008
Exhibited
Yale 2010, no. 58
Condition
The sheet has been carefully presented. The sheet is not laid down but attached to the present mount at the sheet edges. There is the careful restoration of a tear which runs horizantally along the length of the sheet above the inscription of the title. This extensive tear is only visible on very close inspection from the reverse. There is a soft crease to the upper right hand quadrant of the sheet which is also only visible on very close inspection. The pigments remain clear and clean and the ink in particular strong. There is very minor surface dirt overall.
For further information on this lot please contact either Mark Griffith-Jones (mark.griffithjones@sothebys.com - 0044207 293 5083), Emmeline Hallmark (emmeline.hallmark@sothebys.com - 0044207 293 5407) or Nancy Bialler (nancy.bialler@sothebys.com - 001 212 606 7222).
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.
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.
Catalogue Note
A combined interest in both science and the arts meant that the study of the sky and atmospheric phenomena came naturally to Cornelius Varley. He first made sky studies as early as 1798 (see Lowell Libson, Cornelius Varley, The Art of Observation, 2005, no. 2A & B, p. 63) and is considered to be one of the earliest British artists to do so. In 1807 Varley published the first of two articles on the subject in the Philosophical Magazine. While in 1809 he wrote an essay entitled Meteorological Observations on a Thunder Storm which he described as 'some remarks on a thunderstorm seen at a distance' (Yale 2010, p. 76).