- 98
Cornelius Varley
Estimate
4,500 - 7,500 USD
bidding is closed
Description
- Cornelius Varley
- Joshua Cristall (1768-1847) Sketching by the River Wye
- Signed and inscribed Cristal [sic] under his Parasol/ View on the River Wye Cornelius Varley July 12 1803 in ink upper center to upper right and further inscribed July 12 in pencil upper right
- Pencil with stump on wove paper
- 9 1/4 x 14 3/8 inches
Provenance
Mr. and Mrs. G.L.V. Walker, Birmingham
P. & D. Colnaghi, London
Acquired from the above, 1973
P. & D. Colnaghi, London
Acquired from the above, 1973
Exhibited
London, Victoria & Albert Museum, Joshua Cristall 1768-1847, February-April 1975, no. 297
New York, The Pierpont Morgan Library, Sketching at Home and Abroad: British Landscape Drawings, 1750-1850, May-August, 1992
Yale 2010, no. 34
New York, The Pierpont Morgan Library, Sketching at Home and Abroad: British Landscape Drawings, 1750-1850, May-August, 1992
Yale 2010, no. 34
Literature
Michael Pidgley 'Cornelius Varley, Cotman, and the Graphic Telescope,' The Burlington Magazine, vol. CXIV, November 1972, p. 782
Julian Mitchell, The Wye Tour and Its Artists, 2010, p. 95
Julian Mitchell, The Wye Tour and Its Artists, 2010, p. 95
Condition
The sheet has been carefully presented and preserved. The sheet is not laid down but is attached to the present mount at the sheet edges. There is minor surface dirt predominantly at the sheet edges and feint staining overall. There is further light staining overall but the pencil pigments remain clear and strong. All of the above is visible in the catalogue illustration.
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
The present work was drawn in 1803 during Cornelius Varley's tour of Wales with his fellow artist Joshua Cristall. By the early nineteenth century the River Wye, for so long the main trading route from Chepstow in Wales to Hereford in England, had become an important destination for artists and tourists in search of the 'picturesque' landscape.
In this carefully observed work Varley concentrates upon the unusual rock formation and the charming image of his friend sketching on the river bank. Cristall returned to the Wye valley in 1823 moving into the village of Goodrich where he lived until 1841.