Italian City Scene

probably c. 1754/1765 · Drawing

May one see it?

Not receiving at present

Washington, D.C., United States

It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.

4 November 1754
Arrival in Rome
Under the patronage of the future Duc de Choiseul, appointed French ambassador in Rome, Robert set off for Italy and arrived in Rome on 4 November 1754, spending eleven years there.
1754–1765 · Workplace
Rome
1754–1765
Roman circle: Panini, Piranesi, Fragonard
In Rome Robert studied perspective under the veduta master Giovanni Paolo Panini, met Piranesi, and became friends with Jean-Honoré Fragonard and the Abbé de Saint-Non; with Fragonard he drew from nature in Rome and its environs and stayed for long periods at the Villa d'Este in Tivoli.
April 1760
Journey to Naples and Paestum
The Abbé de Saint-Non took Robert and Fragonard to Naples to visit the famous sites of Campania — the excavations of Pompeii and the Doric temples of Paestum, which long continued to inspire Robert after his return to France.
August 1765
Return to Paris
After eleven years in Italy Robert returned to Paris, where his success was swift.
1767
Debut at the Paris Salon
Robert presented thirteen paintings and numerous drawings of ruined classical architecture at the Salon, winning critical acclaim; Diderot wrote: "The ideas that ruins awaken in me are grand." He continued to take part in the Salons regularly until 1798.