Rome from Monte Mario 

Curator: This is a work titled “Rome from Monte Mario” by Hercules Brabazon Brabazon, executed in watercolor and pencil. It seems we lack a specific date for it. Editor: My immediate impression is one of hazy distance. There’s a lightness, an almost ethereal quality in the way the city is rendered. It is so understated. Curator: Brabazon was known for his bold brushstrokes and vivid colours in his watercolors, influenced by Impressionism and Post-Impressionism. I wonder how this scene resonated with him. Viewing Rome from Monte Mario offers a specific vantage point, a site from which artists and tourists alike could contemplate the city's grandeur. Editor: True, the structure provides depth; yet there’s something incomplete about this piece. The subdued palette, predominantly blues and grays, with slight warmth in the lower right quadrant; all feel as if caught at the very cusp of forming recognizable, material things. The use of empty space really brings me peace. Curator: Right, that's partially due to his artistic philosophy. He prioritized capturing the fleeting effects of light and atmosphere over detailed topographical accuracy. It reflects an artistic shift away from the precision expected by earlier academic landscape painters. Also Brabazon often worked "en plein air," seeking to directly record his impressions of the landscape and the ambient climate. This was the era of British Romanticism; the artist attempted to translate raw emotive moments in real-time and convey this sensation to the viewer. Editor: I can appreciate the emphasis on capturing a subjective impression, rather than adhering to precise, objective, depictions. This seems like an echo of J.M.W. Turner in some respects, yet simplified into near-abstraction. A study more so than the presentation. Curator: Exactly. Though, his association with the New English Art Club helped cement his place in British art history. These societies offered exhibition venues outside of the mainstream Royal Academy which in turn created a shift towards modernity, new social perspectives and innovative exhibition tactics. Editor: Overall, it's a fascinating insight into his working methods, it allows the viewer a raw and unadorned interpretation of the sublime Roman landscape. Curator: Indeed, a quiet meditation on a historically charged site; this reveals to us the artist’s intentions.