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Grotto by the Seaside in the Kingdom of Naples with Banditti, Sunset
Joseph Wright of Derby (English, 1734–1797)
1778
Medium/Technique
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
121.9 x 172.7 cm (48 x 68 in.)
Credit Line
Charles H. Bayley Picture and Painting Fund and other Funds, by exchange
Accession Number1990.95
CollectionsEurope
ClassificationsPaintings
With its hazy atmosphere and soft, golden light, this landscape is at once poetic and realistic. At the mouth of a grotto, a group of melancholy bandits (banditti) has gathered—notice their weapons and plumed, classically inspired helmets. Though he spent most of his career in his hometown of Derby, in England, Wright was in Italy from 1773 to 1775. Near Naples, he witnessed an eruption of Mount Vesuvius, and he sketched the grottos off the coast of Salerno, subjects that would remain favorite throughout his career.
Provenance1780, sold by the artist to Josiah Cockshutt (b. 1737 - d. 1801), Chaddesden, Derbyshire [see note 1]; by descent from Cockshutt to his grandson, Cockshutt Heathcote (b. 1793 - d. 1885), Derbyshire; 1840, from Heathcote to Godfrey Meynell, Meynell Langley, Derbyshire [see note 2]; until 1986, by descent within the Meynell family; July 9, 1986, anonymous (Meynell) sale, Sotheby's, London, lot 82, to Thomas Agnew and Sons, Ltd.; 1990, sold by Agnew to the MFA. (Accession Date: February 28, 1990)
NOTES:
[1] See Benedict Nicolson, "Joseph Wright of Derby: Painter of Light" (New Haven and London, 1968), vol. 1, cat. no. 277. Wright sent Cockshutt a bill on August 29, 1780, for this painting and two others, "A Cavern with the Figure of Julia," and "Virgil's Tomb."
[2] The painting was accepted in lieu of payment for a debt owed to Meynell; see Nicolson (as above, n. 1) and Judy Egerton, "Wright of Derby" (exh. cat. Tate Gallery, London, 1990), p. 162, cat. no. 99.
NOTES:
[1] See Benedict Nicolson, "Joseph Wright of Derby: Painter of Light" (New Haven and London, 1968), vol. 1, cat. no. 277. Wright sent Cockshutt a bill on August 29, 1780, for this painting and two others, "A Cavern with the Figure of Julia," and "Virgil's Tomb."
[2] The painting was accepted in lieu of payment for a debt owed to Meynell; see Nicolson (as above, n. 1) and Judy Egerton, "Wright of Derby" (exh. cat. Tate Gallery, London, 1990), p. 162, cat. no. 99.