Clarkson Stanfield (1793-1867) - The Piazza & the Doge's Palace from the Dogana
Clarkson Stanfield regularly travelled to Italy on sketching tours and Venice was always one of his favourite spots. A large painting titled 'Venice from the Dogana' was exhibited at the R.A. in 1833 (no. 247) and is in the Earl of Shelburne's collection. It is a similar composition to our work showing Stanfield clearly sketched from this viewpoint.
A similar watercolour attributed to Stanfield titled 'Venetian scene looking towards the Doge's Palace, St Mark's Square' was sold at Tennant's Auction House on the 19th March 2022 (lot 1034). Again, it is from a very similar vantage point.
Stanfield was also friend's with the artist Edward Pritchett (1808-1894) who specialised in Venetian views. They were known to have been in Venice together in 1837 and would sometimes work side-by-side. The angle of our composition is clearly a favoured spot by many artists and it is therefore unsurprising that Pritchett would also paint many pictures from this view. There is an oil painting in the Leeds Museums and Galleries by Pritchett that is very similar to our work. This suggests that Stanfield may even have lent his sketches to Pritchett as it is known that he was indebted to some of Stanfield's outlines. The character groupings are similar in both works which shows they both were sketching on the same day and viewing the same scene.
Our watercolour is inscribed 'Clarkson Stanfield' on the reverse and was sold at Christie's in 1974.
Medium: Pencil and watercolour on paper, 16.2 x 24.4cm (framed 41.5 x 48.5cm).
Provenance: Christie's English Drawings and Watercolours sale, Tuesday 6th August 1974, lot 26 (see attachment from catalogue verso).
Condition report: generally good for its age. There is some time staining and small foxing marks. There is a small tear on the right hand side of the watercolour and a small abrasion in the lower left hand corner. The frame shows a small amount of wear. Please see photos. Note, the price reflects the watercolour's condition.