Charles Turner (1773-1757) and Willaim Say (1768-1834), after Sir Joshua Reynolds, P.R.A.
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Charles Turner (1773-1757) and Willaim Say (1768-1834), after Sir Joshua Reynolds, P.R.A.

The Dilettanti Society

Details
Charles Turner (1773-1757) and Willaim Say (1768-1834), after Sir Joshua Reynolds, P.R.A.
The Dilettanti Society
mezzotints on india laid paper, the pair, very good impressions, proofs before titles, with margins, rare
unframed
P. 21 15/16 x 16 9/16in. (55.8 x 42.1cm.) (2)
Special notice
No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

The Dilettanti Society was founded in 1732 as a dining club for gentlemen who had travelled to Italy, its purpose apparently to perpetuate the youthful high spirits as well as the cultural pursuits associated with the Grand Tour. Patrons of Italian opera, they subsequently turned their attention to the sponsorship of archaeology, but they wished also to encourage living artists and proposed during the 1740's and 1750's to found an Academy of Art in London. The idea of a group portrait seems to have been first suggested at the dinner of 12 January 1777, which we know that Reynolds attended.

The original paintings hang at Brooks's in St Jamses, London, but still belong to the Dilettanti Society

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