The Aventine from the Palatine, 1873. Watercolour and gouache on paper; 11½ x 17¼ inches (29.2 x 43.8 cm). Collection of the Brooklyn Museum, accession no. 1989.25.2.
Crane spent three years in Rome from 1871-74 on his extended honeymoon. In 1871 Leighton had introduced him to Giovanni Costa. Leighton wrote Crane from London on March 1, 1872: “I am glad to hear that you have made friends with my excellent Costa, who as an artist is one in hundreds and as a man one in thousands” (Crane, Reminiscences, 131). After the initial introduction Crane immediately visited Costa at his studio in the Via Margutta where he was shown Costa’s landscape sketches and two large pictures, including a view near Via Reggio, Leghorn and a nude nymph in a wood entitled The Nymph of Fontainebleau. In addition to the mentorship of Costa, Crane also spent time painting with his friend Edgar Barclay, who later became a formal member of the Etruscan school. Barclay had also come to Rome to paint during that same winter of 1871-72.
This early watercolour, executed during Crane’s honeymoon in Rome, was obviously directly influenced by his association with Costa. This sombre winter scene of a bleak landscape is very much a harmony in green. The Aventine is the southernmost of the seven hills of Rome. The religious structure seen in the background is probablye the Basilica di Santa Sabina all'Aventino, the oldest major Roman Basilica in Rome.
Bibliography
Crane, Walter: An Artist's Reminiscences. London: Methuen, 1907.
Last modified 19 December 2022