~ Villefrance Fort With Battleship Etching By W.L. Wyllie (1851-1931) ~
A very clean etching of the Villefrance fort on the French Riveria (erroneously labelled to the reverse as Dunollie Castle of Oban, Scotland) by the famous marine artist W.L. Wyllie RA. (1851-1931).
The piece depicts the shore with various types types of boats and ships sailing on calm waters, a steaming battleship (believed to be HMS Neptune, 1909) is in the background preparing for duty.
The etching has been signed in pencil to the bottom left hand corner.
It is presented in its original frame with an old - but incorrect - gallery label to the reverse.
~ William Lionel Wyllie (R.A.) ~
William Lionel Wyllie R.A was born on the 5th July 1851 in London. W L Wyllie studied at Heatherleys and later at The Royal Academy Schools where in 1869 he won the Turner medal. It was here he studied under the great artists of the time, including Landseer, Leighton and Millais. He moved to Portsmouth in 1907.
During the First World War the Admiralty gave him permission to travel on many of the naval ships, where he produced a significant number of drawings, many of which are available here as black and white and coloured book plates of the period. One of his major works was commissioned by the United Services Club in 1926, the painting being the Battle of Jutland. William Lionel Wyllie died on the 6th April 1931. He certainly was one of the leading naval and maritime artists of the Victorian and Edwardian Periods.
~ Dimensions ~
The frame has a width of 20.5 inches (52 cm), a height of 15.3 inches (38.7 cm) and a depth of 0.5 inches (1.2 cm).
The etching has a width of 14.5 inches (36.8 cm) and a height of 6.4 inches (16.2 cm).
It weighs 1.63 kg.
~ Condition ~
Both the etching and the frame are in excellent condition. The paper is bright, there are a couple of small, light foxing spots.
