Departure for the Hunt in the Pontine Marshes
Horace Vernet·1833
Historical Context
Vernet's Departure for the Hunt in the Pontine Marshes from 1833 is the companion piece to the Hunting in the Pontine Marshes, together forming a narrative of the Roman hunt from preparation to execution. The departure scene — hunters gathering, horses being readied, dogs straining at leashes — allowed Vernet to display his mastery of equestrian painting and his ability to organize complex multi-figure compositions with military precision. The Pontine Marshes subjects were among his most popular Roman works, combining the picturesque Italian landscape with the aristocratic sport of hunting in a format that appealed to both Italian and French collectors.
Technical Analysis
Vernet's oil on canvas shows his mastery of equestrian painting with animated horses and riders set against the atmospheric Italian landscape, using warm morning light and dynamic composition to capture the anticipation of the hunt.
Provenance
Pierre-Hippolyte Aumont [d. 1865], by 1846.[1] Probably (sale, Hôtel Drouot, Paris, 6 May 1870, no. 5, as _Vue dans la forêt de Nettuno_).[2] Private collection, France; (sale, Drouot Richelieu, Renaud-Giquello & Associates, Paris, 17 October 2003, no. 52); (Richard L. Feigen & Co., New York); purchased 27 February 2004 by NGA. [1] According to the 2003 sale catalogue, Pierre-Hipppolyte Aumont likely owned this painting at the time he lent its pendant, Vernet's _Hunting in the Pontine Marshes_ (NGA 1989.3.1), to an 1846 exhibition at the Bazar Bonne-Nouvelle. [2] Bruno Chenique has suggested that this is the NGA painting, sold together with NGA 1989.3.1, which was lot 4, _Chasse dans les marais Pontins_, in the sale catalogue.
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