.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
This work has been authenticated by Professor von Holst on the basis of a photograph.
Although primarily a painter in oils, Koch was also an extremely gifted draughtsman and he produced numerous drawings and watercolours throughout the course of his career. These were often sketches for large scale works, but others seem to have been produced for their own sake. Indeed a series of twenty pen and ink views of the Roman campagna were made directly into engravings in 1810 and published by the artist himself.
Koch's first major drawings and studies from nature date from 1791, the year he left the Hohe Karlsschule in Stuttgart to travel to Switzerland, where he became enchanted by the Alpine scenery. By 1795 he had moved south to Italy, settling in Rome where he remained for most of his life.
The present work, which probably dates from around 1797-98, is a highly accomplished watercolour depicting the countryside surrounding Rome, with a view of the city in the distance. The scene also shows a woman carrying a bundle on her head, with her child in the foreground, whilst a shepherd tends his flock in the middle distance. Koch's subtle colouring and attention to detail are particularly evident in the masterful handling of the rocky outcrops and the different types of foliage in the plants and trees.
We are grateful to Professor von Holst for his assistance in cataloguing this work.
Although primarily a painter in oils, Koch was also an extremely gifted draughtsman and he produced numerous drawings and watercolours throughout the course of his career. These were often sketches for large scale works, but others seem to have been produced for their own sake. Indeed a series of twenty pen and ink views of the Roman campagna were made directly into engravings in 1810 and published by the artist himself.
Koch's first major drawings and studies from nature date from 1791, the year he left the Hohe Karlsschule in Stuttgart to travel to Switzerland, where he became enchanted by the Alpine scenery. By 1795 he had moved south to Italy, settling in Rome where he remained for most of his life.
The present work, which probably dates from around 1797-98, is a highly accomplished watercolour depicting the countryside surrounding Rome, with a view of the city in the distance. The scene also shows a woman carrying a bundle on her head, with her child in the foreground, whilst a shepherd tends his flock in the middle distance. Koch's subtle colouring and attention to detail are particularly evident in the masterful handling of the rocky outcrops and the different types of foliage in the plants and trees.
We are grateful to Professor von Holst for his assistance in cataloguing this work.