View from Mirabella

John Robert Cozens (1752-1797) painted landscape watercolours that were beautiful in their own right. Such watercolours became popular in the period 1770-1790. They became more popular than the old tradition of topography - the accurate drawing of an actual place. Cozens was one of the first artists to respond to this new trend.

Cozen’s watercolours influenced the work of artists such as Thomas Girtin (1775-1802), Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851) and John Constable (1776-1837). The original drawing for this watercolour is in a sketchbook. There the artist inscribed it with a more detailed title: ‘From Mirabella the villa of Count Algarotti - On the Euganean hills 10 miles from Padua’.