Capriccio of a Harbor

Provenance

Possibly (sale, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 31 May 1902, no. 101).[1] (Martin Colnaghi [1821-1908], London).[2] George A. Hearn [1835-1913], New York; (his sale, American Art Galleries, New York, 25 February-4 March 1918, no. 446); purchased by (O. Bernet).[3] Emil Winter, Pittsburgh; (his sale, Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, 15-17 January 1942, no. 442); purchased by (Julius H. Weitzner [1896-1986], New York).[4] (Schaeffer Galleries, New York);[5] purchased 1942 by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, New York;[6] gift 1943 to NGA. [1] "Coast scene, with ruined buildings and bridges, boats and figures in the foreground." The dimensions, 48 x 70 in., match the National Gallery's painting exactly, but this general description could also apply to a lost pendant or even another version. A marginal notation in the Knoedler fiche copy of the catalogue gives the buyer as "Mostyn." Algernon Graves, _Art Sales from Early in the Eighteenth Century to Early in the Twentieth Century_, 3 vols., London, 1918-1921: 1:383, gives the buyer as "Lawson" and lists an incorrect sale date. [2] According to the Hearn sale catalogue. [3] A marginal notation in the NGA copy of the Hearn catalogue lists Bernet as "agent," perhaps for Winter. [4] _Art Prices Current_, n.s. 20 (1941-1942): no. 1130. [5] The original prospectus in the NGA curatorial files bears the Schaeffer Galleries' stamp. There is a reference to a Guardi Capriccio, no. 675, in the Schaeffer Gallery Records at the Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, but no stock card. [6] See also The Kress Collection Digital Archive, https://kress.nga.gov/Detail/objects/437.

Capriccio of a Harbor

Guardi, Francesco

c. 1760/1770

Accession Number

1943.4.50

Medium

oil on canvas

Dimensions

overall: 122 x 178 cm (48 1/16 x 70 1/16 in.) | framed: 154.9 x 209.6 cm (61 x 82 1/2 in.)

Classification

Painting

Museum

National Gallery of Art

Washington, D.C., United States

Credit Line

Samuel H. Kress Collection