View of the Villa Torlonia, Frascati, at Dusk

Paul Flandrin

ca. 1834–38 · Oil on paper, laid down on paper · European Paintings

This study was painted at Frascati, thirteen miles from Rome. The villa it depicts was owned by the Torlonia, a rich banking family. Its real subject, however, is the deep yet fleeting tones of a sunset’s afterglow. The rendering of color with such minimal light (at the precise moment of moonrise) is exceptional, even for an artist who typically achieved a high degree of refined austerity in his paintings.

Artist

Paul Flandrin

Date

ca. 1834–38

Medium

Oil on paper, laid down on paper

Department

European Paintings

Credit line

The Whitney Collection, Promised Gift of Wheelock Whitney III, and Purchase, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles S. McVeigh, by exchange, 2003