A View of the River Dee

A founding member of the Royal Academy, Richard Wilson was one of the first British artists to promote landscape as a subject in its own right. He produced a number of views of the River Dee in Cheshire, stretching to the hills of his native Wales in the distance. Like many of Wilson’s paintings, this landscape presents an idealised view of nature, emphasising its harmony and serenity. The warm golden light that bathes the composition is a reminder of Wilson’s recent seven-year stay in Italy (1750–57).