J.M.W. Turner: “Ehrenbreitstein”
Francesco Guardi: “The Rialto Bridge with the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi”
Major works by Turner and Guardi come to auction On July 5th 2017, Sotheby’s will offer for sale ‘Ehrenbreitstein’, one of the greatest works by J.M.W. Turner still in private hands. The following day, Christie’s will offer Francesco Guardi’s masterpiece ‘The Rialto Bridge with the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi’]]>
Source: Sotheby’s / Christie’s
J.M.W. Turner: “Ehrenbreitstein”
Painted in 1835, Ehrenbreitstein is a late work, dating from a period that is widely considered Turner’s best: other works from this time now hang in the world’s greatest museums, with only a minute number of this importance and quality remaining in private ownership. The subject of enormous critical acclaim when it was first exhibited in 1835, the painting depicts the ruined fortress of Ehrenbreitstein near Coblenz – a place of special significance for Turner. Though he made many drawings and watercolours of German views, this is the most important oil painting of a German subject that Turner ever painted. The picture will be offered at Sotheby’s in London on 5th July with an estimate of £15-25 million (US$18.7-31.2m / €17.3-28.9m).
Major works of such astounding quality by Turner are rare on the international market. The last example to be offered (Rome, from Mount Aventine, painted in the same year as Ehrenbreitstein and offered at Sotheby’s in 2014) made a record £30.3 million/ $47.6 million
Francesco Guardi: “The Rialto Bridge with the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi”
This magnificent picture, which is expected to fetch more than £25 million, is one of the celebrated pair of views of the Grand Canal at the Rialto, which are widely regarded as the most accomplished works of Guardi’s early maturity. Ambitious in scale and startlingly innovative both in design and pictorial mood, this work stands among the masterpieces of eighteenth-century European art. The picture is prominently signed and exceptionally well preserved, having been offered for sale only once in its history.
Taking its vantage point from what is today the view from the Palazzo Sernagiotto, Guardi illustrates iconic landmarks of the Venetian landscape including the Palazzo Civran, the Fondaco dei Tedeschi, long famous for its murals by Giorgione and Titian, the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi, the Fruit Market and the supremely elegant Rialto Bridge itself, built in 1588–91 to the design of Antonio da Ponte.
Related content
Turner’s ‘Rome, from Mount Aventine’ sells for £30.3 million (news, 2014)
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