Public data from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Learn more
View of Castel Gandolfo
About the Artwork
In his watercolors, Foster depicted an idealized life in rural England. His work was appreciated as Pre-Raphaelite in its intricate detail, but was without the harsh color and unorthodox subjects that made the brotherhood controversial. Foster’s watercolors proved enormously appealing to the Victorians; each new work was eagerly anticipated, and color lithographs after his watercolors helped popularize his imagery. While the English countryside was the inspiration for much of his work, he traveled abroad regularly, and made several trips to Italy in the 1870s. A view of peasants picnicking at the gates of Castel Gandolfo overlooking Lake Albano is the subject of this watercolor.
Inscriptions
Signed with monogram, lower left; Verso, center, "V.G. Fischer Art Gall's, Wash. D.C."
Provenance
unknown: (V.G. Fischer Art Galleries, Washington, D.C.) ?-1946: Fanny Tewksbury King [1867-1949], Cleveland Heights, OH, given to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH November 25, 1946-: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Exhibition history
Nature Sublime: Landscapes from the 19th Century. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 15-November 14, 2004).
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Myles Birket Foster (British, 1825–1899)
- Date
- c. 1870s
- Medium
- watercolor
- Dimensions
- Sheet: 16.5 x 23.8 cm (6 1/2 x 9 3/8 in.)
- Type
- Drawing
- Classification
- Drawing
- Department
- Drawings
- Credit line
- In memory of Ralph King, gift of Mrs. Ralph King; Ralph T. Woods, Charles G. King; and Frances King Schafer
- Accession no.
- 1946.285
More by Myles Birket Foster in museum collections
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Open-access museum record · AT-00011484
Powered by Art Trackers