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拍品專文
In Mary Watts's catalogue of her husband's work she recalls that during brief visits to England the celebrated Dutch scientist and ophthalmologist, Frans Cornelis Donders sat for two portraits by Watts. Their mutual friend Sir William Bowman had commissioned the completed portrait, and also purchased the study presented here.
We are grateful to Rhian Adderson at The Watts Gallery for her assistance in preparing this catalogue entry.
Watts and Sir William shared a mutual admiration for Donders's work and research. In 1847 Donders had been appointed as professor at the Hogeschool of Utrecht. His controversial inaugural lecture outlined ideas that were suggestive of Charles Darwin's later theory that all animals and plants had developed from former species. Whilst Donders's ideas were not as developed as Darwin, Darwin did recognise him as an important predecessor, writing to Donders in 1871 'It is clear that you have been as close as possible to predecease me concerning the natural selection.' Donders and Darwin had met in 1869 and remained regular correspondents, with Donders assisting Darwin with his research into the continuity of expressions between apes and humans, by undertaking painstaking experiments on the operation of the eye muscles in weeping.
We are grateful to Rhian Adderson at The Watts Gallery for her assistance in preparing this catalogue entry.
Watts and Sir William shared a mutual admiration for Donders's work and research. In 1847 Donders had been appointed as professor at the Hogeschool of Utrecht. His controversial inaugural lecture outlined ideas that were suggestive of Charles Darwin's later theory that all animals and plants had developed from former species. Whilst Donders's ideas were not as developed as Darwin, Darwin did recognise him as an important predecessor, writing to Donders in 1871 'It is clear that you have been as close as possible to predecease me concerning the natural selection.' Donders and Darwin had met in 1869 and remained regular correspondents, with Donders assisting Darwin with his research into the continuity of expressions between apes and humans, by undertaking painstaking experiments on the operation of the eye muscles in weeping.