Lot Essay
In view of its subject, it is tempting to link the commission of the present work with Hackert's patron Sir William Hamilton. From 1764 Hamilton was British envoy extraordinary and plenipotentiary at the court of Naples where he secured the neutrality of Naples in the American War and settled the misunderstanding between the royal families in Spain and Naples in 1784-6. Following Hackert's move to Rome from Paris in 1768, Hamilton soon invited the young artist to Naples. It was during this first trip to Naples that Hackert also received his first major commission of marine views from Catherine the Great of Russia to paint twelve pictures for the Peterhoff of the seige by the Russian fleet of the Turks at Tschesme. Hamilton cannot, therefore, have been ignorant of the artist's capabilities at this time.
In 1777 when the present picture was painted, much of Hamilton's leisure was divided between his twin interests of studying volcanic phenomena and collecting antiquities. Hackert is known to have provided illustrations for Hamilton's Campi Phlegraei, a work on the volcanoes of the two Sicilies, published in Naples in 1776 in two volumes with fifty-four engraved plates. In addition to painting the present picture, the following year Hackert accompanied the antiquarian and connoisseur Richard Payne Knight on a sketching tour of Sicily. Hamilton and Payne Knight were close friends; both were fellows of the Society of Antiquaires and members of the Dilettanti. Their influence on Hackert is, therefore, important to note.
The present work demonstrates that by 1777 Hackert's treatment of marine subjects had successfully distanced itself from the example of his earlier teacher, Vernet. Whilst working in the studio of Johann Georg Wille, Hackert is known to have executed at least two copies after Vernet, the Seestorm and Seestück, now in Dresden. Hackert's early independent production also showed a close affinity with Vernet's style and subject matter. Paintings such as The Harbour with Sailing Ships of 1767, at Schloß Kiel, demonstrate the same concern for flickering dramatic light effects, decorative French colouring and sense of movement in the portrayal of the elements.
It was Hackert's increasing interest in realism and naturalistic accuracy that prevented his art from becoming merely imitative of Vernet, and led to the evolution of his own highly original style. The artist's concern with naturalism and order can only have been increased by his association with Hamilton and Payne Knight. The latter combined his interest in the classical past with a keen interest in contemporary landscape, and his published views accord closely with Hackert's increasingly individual approach to topographical accuracy in the rendering of seascapes. This in turn occasioned the distinctive evolution of Hackert's style as demonstrated in the present picture where there is a tightening of technique, increasing firmness of line, restriction of palette and logical clarity of lighting and composition. The resultant style has led some scholars to consider Hackert to be the first major exponent of the 'neoclassical' landscape (see W. Krönig, Jakob Philipp Hackert (1737-1807). Ein werk und Lebenshild, in Köln, Wallraf Richartz Museum, Heroismus und Idylle. Formen der Landscaft um 1800, 1984, p. 11ff.). The technique and seeming objectivity immediately recreates an intense sense of historical incident and location. The present picture can be compared with The Four Views of The Harbour and Port of Livorno painted by the artist in 1778 and 1779 (Sale Internationales, Berlin, 8 Oct. 1932, lots 308-11). It is much larger in size and more impressive in scale, and clearly ranks as one of the most important and ambitious marine works ever produced by the artist. Such being the case, it is likely that the present work resulted from a prestigious commission perhaps from Hamilton or his circle.
We are grateful to Mr. Theodore Archibald for identifying the ships.
In 1777 when the present picture was painted, much of Hamilton's leisure was divided between his twin interests of studying volcanic phenomena and collecting antiquities. Hackert is known to have provided illustrations for Hamilton's Campi Phlegraei, a work on the volcanoes of the two Sicilies, published in Naples in 1776 in two volumes with fifty-four engraved plates. In addition to painting the present picture, the following year Hackert accompanied the antiquarian and connoisseur Richard Payne Knight on a sketching tour of Sicily. Hamilton and Payne Knight were close friends; both were fellows of the Society of Antiquaires and members of the Dilettanti. Their influence on Hackert is, therefore, important to note.
The present work demonstrates that by 1777 Hackert's treatment of marine subjects had successfully distanced itself from the example of his earlier teacher, Vernet. Whilst working in the studio of Johann Georg Wille, Hackert is known to have executed at least two copies after Vernet, the Seestorm and Seestück, now in Dresden. Hackert's early independent production also showed a close affinity with Vernet's style and subject matter. Paintings such as The Harbour with Sailing Ships of 1767, at Schloß Kiel, demonstrate the same concern for flickering dramatic light effects, decorative French colouring and sense of movement in the portrayal of the elements.
It was Hackert's increasing interest in realism and naturalistic accuracy that prevented his art from becoming merely imitative of Vernet, and led to the evolution of his own highly original style. The artist's concern with naturalism and order can only have been increased by his association with Hamilton and Payne Knight. The latter combined his interest in the classical past with a keen interest in contemporary landscape, and his published views accord closely with Hackert's increasingly individual approach to topographical accuracy in the rendering of seascapes. This in turn occasioned the distinctive evolution of Hackert's style as demonstrated in the present picture where there is a tightening of technique, increasing firmness of line, restriction of palette and logical clarity of lighting and composition. The resultant style has led some scholars to consider Hackert to be the first major exponent of the 'neoclassical' landscape (see W. Krönig, Jakob Philipp Hackert (1737-1807). Ein werk und Lebenshild, in Köln, Wallraf Richartz Museum, Heroismus und Idylle. Formen der Landscaft um 1800, 1984, p. 11ff.). The technique and seeming objectivity immediately recreates an intense sense of historical incident and location. The present picture can be compared with The Four Views of The Harbour and Port of Livorno painted by the artist in 1778 and 1779 (Sale Internationales, Berlin, 8 Oct. 1932, lots 308-11). It is much larger in size and more impressive in scale, and clearly ranks as one of the most important and ambitious marine works ever produced by the artist. Such being the case, it is likely that the present work resulted from a prestigious commission perhaps from Hamilton or his circle.
We are grateful to Mr. Theodore Archibald for identifying the ships.