View this artwork by appointment, at Tate Britain's Prints and Drawings Rooms
- Artist
- Dominic Serres 1722–1793
- Medium
- Graphite, watercolour and ink on paper
- Dimensions
- Support: 204 x 378 mm
- Collection
- Tate
- Acquisition
- Purchased as part of the Oppé Collection with assistance from the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund 1996
- Reference
- T08269
Display caption
The Frenchman Dominic Serres spent the whole of his working life as an artist in England, practising almost exclusively as a marine painter. In 1768 he was one of the thirty-six founder members of the Royal Academy.In 1791 he became Marine Painter to the King. The evidence for a visit by Serres to southern Italy is purely circumstantial. This watercolour shows the view looking from the east towards Naples across the Bay of Pozzuoli; the drifting smoke of Mount Vesuvius can be seen on the horizon. It is a modest gently coloured drawing which reveals a regard for subtle atmospheric effects. Serres has noted with numbers the significant landmarks in the view, and these are described in a key on the reverse.
Gallery label, September 2004
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