Richard Wilson, R.A.

With Frank and Co.;
With Hirschl & Adler Gallery, New York, by 1953;
From whom purchased by the Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus, Georgia in 1953;
By whom sold ("Property from the Columbus Museum, Columbus, Georgia, sold to benefit the Museum's Acquisition Funds"), New York, Sotheby's, 22 May 1997, lot 108;
There purchased by the present collector.

Bath, England, No. 1 Royal Crescent, on loan 1998-2010.

W.G. Constable, Richard Wilson, London 1953, p. 240;
Connoisseur Magazine, Vol. CXXXIII, March 1954, p. 69, reproduced p. 68;
W.G. Constable, "Richard Wilson: Some Pentimenti," in Burlington Magazine, 1954, Vol. XCVI, p. 144, no. 4, reproduced fig. 15.

Relined. painting is clean and presentable in its present state. the paint surface has been very well preserved and there is nice detail throughout. examination under ultraviolet light reveals only some small retouches in the sky, along upper edge and a few small ones scattered here and there in foliage and landscape. these have been well applied and there is no need for further work. In an elaborately carved and gilt wood frame.
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.

The Acqua Acetosa is a spring at the foot of Mount Parioli, near the Tiber and to the north of Rome.  The building depicted at left is the Edicola, dating from circa 1661, which still covers the spring today. 

This painting is probably dateable to circa 1753-54, during Wilson's Italian sojourn.  In Italy, he was influenced by the works of such artists as Claude Lorrain and Francesco Zuccarelli, and determined to devote himself entirely to the genre of landscape painting.  This work is reminiscent of various views of Rome from that period, notably Rome: St. Peter's and the Vatican from the Janiculum (Earl of Dartmouth collection).

This painting will be included in the online catalogue raisonné of the works of Richard Wilson being compiled by Dr. Paul Spencer-Longhurst, Senior Research Fellow, The Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art, London.