Francesco Guardi

Lucille Cohen, London;
Marquis de Biron (1859-1939), Paris;
Duc de Talleyrand, Saint-Brice-sous-Forêt;
The British Rail Pension Fund,
from which purchased by the present owner

G.A. Simonson, Francesco Guardi (1712-1793), London 1904, p. 99, no. 283, p. 62, reproduced;
A. Morassi, Dessins Vénitiens du Dix-huitième Siècle de la Collection du Duc de Talleyrand, Milan 1958, p. 10, p. 30, no. 68, reproduced, fig. 68;
Idem, Guardi, Antonio e Francesco Guardi, Venice 1973, vol. I, p. 473, under no. 877;
Idem, Guardi. I Disegni, Venice 1975, p. 184, no. 613, reproduced fig. 604

Glued around the margins to a new mount. Overall in good condition and ink, chalk, and wash fresh and strong. Some scattered brown staining at the bottom of the sheet. Some small foxing and a few little light brown stains to the top right and on the upper part of the sheet and at the edge of the margins. Sold mounted but not 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.

A very handsome example of Guardi’s lively and subtle style, this grand capriccio, formerly in the celebrated collection of the Duc de Talleyrand, relates closely to a painting datable to around 1760-70 (fig. 1), in a Milanese private collection.¹  The tower and the rustic buildings to the right and left of the composition are very similar in both painting and drawing, as is the central visual focus with its two trees.  The figures to the left of the drawing, a woman and a man looking towards the sailing boats on the horizon, are also close to those found in the painted version. 

This type of capriccio is a recurrent theme in Francesco Guardi’s oeuvre, both drawn and painted.  In his entry for the present sheet, Morassi noted: ’Bella e nota composizione, più volta ripetuta da Francesco Guardi in disegni e dipinti, in cui elementi tipicamente agresti si fondono con l’atmosfera lagunare.’  Drawings such as this, spontaneous yet at the same time very complete, with abundant and masterly use of wash over a very visible and robust black chalk underdrawing, must have been executed not only with a final work in mind but also to be sold as finished works of art in their own right, or to be kept in the studio for future reference.  The drawn framing lines and surrounding margins that enclose the composition further emphasise the drawing's status as a finished work of art, which combines the real and the fantastic, creating a poetic and picturesque representation of the Venetian lagoon.  Guardi's graphic style, shown off to its very best in this outstanding work, combines all the imagination and freshness of improvisation with an incredible technical ability in the vibrant and variated use of the pen and ink.  A weak version of the present sheet is in the Detroit Institute of Art.² 

The Duc de Talleyrand's collection of 18th-century Venetian drawings was one of the finest of its type.  It is interesting to note that the present sheet was previously in the collection of Talleyrand's uncle, the Marquis de Biron (1859-1939) to whom, as Morassi pointed out, the Duc owed his artistic formation and his passion for Venetian art.³  See also the note to the following lot.

¹ A. Morassi, op. cit., 1975, p. 184 no. 613

² Inv. no. 34.190 (as Giuseppe Bernardino Bison); Morassi, op. cit., 1975, p. 184, no. 613

³ Morassi, op. cit., 1975, pp. 9-10