William Hodges R.A.

G. Beatson Blair, Whally, Manchester;
With Drown, London;
With Spink & Son Ltd., London;
With Hazlitt, Gooden & Fox, London;
Anonymous sale, London, Christie's, 3 December 2008, lot 180.

W. G. Constable, Richard Wilson, London 1953, p. 216, pl. 104a (as 'Richard Wilson').

The picture is in generally good condition, and the catalogue illustration is representative. It has a firm lining and the paint is slightly flat as a result. There is no extant damage or loss of paint and there is still some impasto in the white highlights. Examination under ultraviolet light reveals faint signs of old restoration in the sky, upper right, and there is some more recent scattered retouching in the dark pigments of the foliage and in the foreground lower right. Held in a green painted wooden frame, with a gilded inner edge. To speak to a specialist about this lot please contact Julian Gascoigne on +44 (0)207 293 5482, or at julian.gascoigne@sothebys.com
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Previously thought by Constable (op. cit) to have been been painted by Richard Wilson, this picture was subsequently re-attributed to William Hodges and sold as such in 2008. Having trained at the Shipley Academy in the Strand, Hodges became a pupil and assistant to Richard Wilson from 1758 to 1765 (about whom he published a short biographical essay in 1790). Most likely painted in the late 1760's or early 1770's, prior to his voyage to the South Pacific with Captain Cook in 1772, this picture is indebted to Wilson's classical landscape, foreshadowing Hodge's later style which is marked by freer handling, bolder juxtapositions of colour and a more empirical response to the natural world.
We are grateful to Dr. Paul Spencer-Longhurst for endorsing the attribution to Hodges on the basis of photographs.