WILLIAM CALLOW, R.W.S. | Lake Como, Italy

Probably, London, Old Water-Colour Society, 1842 (as View of Como)

In general this watercolour has survived well. Their has been some typical tonal drop back to some of the most delicate pigments. There are occasional very minor foxmarks, but these can only be seen on close inspection. The paper has darkened a little and the extreme edges of the sheet are discoloured (this is hidden by the current mount). The work is laid down.
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This grand watercolour, which is painted on an impressive scale, is dated 1842. This was an important moment in the career of the young artist. Between 1829 and 1841, he had lived in Paris, where he had built up a considerable reputation. His position in French society had been secured when, in 1834, he was appointed 'official drawings master' to Princess Clementine of Orleans. In 1841, he decided to leave the relative safety of royal patronage and return to London, where he had been successfully exhibiting at the annual Old Water-colour Society exhibition since 1838.   In 1842, Callow’s first full year back in England, he submitted seven works to the exhibition. Amongst these was a picture entitled View of Como and it is quite possible that the present watercolour and that are one and the same.¹

In the autumn of 1840, Callow had made his first visit to Italy. It was an extensive tour, which took him to many major cities, including Venice and Rome. He reached Lake Como soon after crossing the Alps at Geneva and in his autobiography, he described passing a number of enjoyable days there, exploring the lake by boat and sketching 'all the next day' at the shore-side village of Como itself.¹ At Birmingham City Art Gallery, there is a fine ‘on-the-spot’ pencil drawing of the lake and town, which must have acted as a prototype for the present work.   

^1. Ed. H.M. Cundall, William Callow, An Autobiography, London 1908, p. 76