K.-J. Verne (1714-1789) and the Landscape Painting in the Italian Art Scene

Agratina Elena Evgen'evna ORCID: 0000-0001-9842-0967 PhD in Art History Postgraduate student; Lomonosov Moscow State University Senior Researcher; Scientific Research Institute of Theory and History of Fine Arts of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Moscow; Russia 21 Prechistenka Street, Moscow, 119034, Russia agratina_elena@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Claude-Joseph Vernet (1714-1789), a master of landscape, famous for his sea views, spent nineteen years in Italy. The tradition of completing the study period by traveling beyond the Alps was very common among French artists. Back in the 17th century, the Paris Academy established a scholarship that allowed the best graduates to live in Rome for three years at the expense of the king. But even those who could not apply for a royal scholarship at the specially established French Academy in Rome, sought to get to Italy to get acquainted with the best works of Italian art from Antiquity to modern times. To do this, they turned to rich patrons, joined embassy missions, and used family capital. And although it was believed that historical painters could benefit the most from such a trip – they were mainly sponsored by the Paris Academy – it should be noted that masters of other genres aspired to Italy no less, and the result of such a voyage could be the development of a completely original talent. A similar example is the hero of this study. Born in Avignon, Vernet did not study at the Paris Academy of Painting and Sculpture, and therefore did not qualify for the famous Rome Prize. His voyage was carried out at the expense of the Provence patrons. Perhaps the young master's intention to work in the genre of landscape was formed in France, but it was in Italy that his creative personality fully developed, his own style was formed, and the range of his favorite techniques and subjects was determined.

The literature devoted to Vernet's work was created mainly by representatives of foreign art studies. In France, the first large-scale monograph about the artist was created by L. Lagrange in the middle of the 19th century ^[1]. Lagrange studied and published, albeit in abridgment, an incredibly valuable source – the notebooks of the master. Vernet conducted them throughout his life starting in 1735, and therefore they contain a large amount of materials related to the landscape painter's stay in Italy. In the collection "Materials of the Vaucluse Academy" in 1915, a rather voluminous article by A. Marcel was published on Vernet's youth ^[2]. A. Marcel introduced into scientific circulation documents clarifying the circumstances of Vernet's arrival in Italy and his life there. A two-volume catalog of the master's works, accompanied by an introductory article, was released by F. Ingersole College in 1926 ^[3]. In particular, the researcher talks about Vernet's stay in Italy. In the 20th century, the French-American specialist F. F. paid attention to the artist. Conisbee. In the context of the stated topic, we will be interested in his article "Salvator Rosa and Joseph Vernet" ^[4]. A lot of work on the study of Vernet's legacy from the perspective of modern science has been done by the Italian-French researcher E. Back-Saello, who has published a series of articles on various aspects of the artist's work. As for the Italian period of the master's work, E. Back-Saello's large-scale work "Naples and France" constantly refers to the name of Vernet, his experience as a traveling artist ^[5]. Also among the modern studies that have proved useful to us, we can mention the article by S. Guichard, where attention is paid to the analysis of Vernet's notebooks ^[6], and the article by S. Wurman, where the concepts of "sublime" and "beautiful", popular in the XVIII century, are explored in relation to the work of the landscape painter ^[7]. As for Russian-language literature, it is unreasonably scarce. There is a publication by E.V. Deryabina about the master's works stored in the GE ^[8]. Several of these paintings date back to the time of Vernet's stay in Italy. An article by I.S. Nemilova in the author's collection "Riddles of Old Paintings" ^[9] is also devoted to paintings by Vernet of the Italian period. There is an article by E. Sharnova devoted to the influence of the Italian painter Salvator Rosa on the French landscape of the XVIII century, Vernet is given the most attention here ^[10]. However, the Italian period of Vernet's work in Russian historiography has never been the subject of a separate detailed study. Italian impressions, which, without exaggeration, completely determined the artist's further life path, have not yet been the subject of detailed consideration in Russian science. This determined the novelty of our research. At the same time, the study of such an important stage in the life of every artist as apprenticeship and the first independent steps cannot but arouse scientific interest. It is during this period that any master finds his "niche", fits into a certain context, which, on the one hand, is chosen based on the inclinations and capabilities of the hero himself, and on the other hand, has a significant influence on him, forms and to some extent changes the creative personality of the master. Thus, this small study fits into the context of modern sociological research in the field of art history and can be considered relevant.

The purpose of this study is to comprehensively examine the experience gained by Vernet during his stay in Italy. Since in the course of the work the text exceeded the volume set for the article, it was decided to divide it into two parts. The first one, presented here to the reader's attention, will tell about Vernet's work in the context of the existence of the landscape genre in Italy, about the painter's connections with other artists who lived in Rome, both locals and visitors. The issues of apprenticeship, continuity with the masters of the past and the exchange of experience with contemporaries will be discussed. We will be interested in learning from those who formed part of the Italian artistic environment, building professional and friendly relationships with colleagues. Of course, the most important task will be to study how this experience was reflected in the artist's work, for which the extensive body of works by Vernet from the Italian period will be involved.

The second part, which we intend to present later as a separate publication, will be devoted to Vernet's travels in Italy, his acquaintance with the nature and architecture of various regions of the country and the reflection of his impressions in his work. As necessary, the aspect of Vernet's interaction with customers of different social status will also be considered, despite the fact that we have already devoted a separate article to this problem ^[11].

1. The student period of K.-J. Vernet's life and work

A few words should be said about Vernet's initial training, which took place in his homeland – in Avignon, and then in Aix. The family of the future artist was extraordinary even by the standards of the XVIII century. Claude-Joseph was the second of twenty-two siblings. L. Lagrange conveys, perhaps somewhat exaggerated information that little Vernet was a real child prodigy: at the age of five he drew his head in pencil, and at eight he tried to paint in oil for the first time, asking his parents to give him an easel ^{[1, p. 3]} The boy was educated by his father, Antoine Vernet, who was a good but mediocre artist. Living in the provinces, he did not neglect any work, along with decorative panels, painting carriages and furniture. At the age of fifteen, Claude-Joseph began successfully assisting his father. However, it was obvious that the fate of a provincial semi-artisan would be unenviable for such a talent. His father sent Vernet to Aix, where Jacques Vialy (1650-1745), a master who maintained friendly relations with the Vernet family, lived. This painter took Claude-Joseph as a student. Aix-en-Provence was a very significant center at that time. The Parliament of Provence met here, therefore, there were large customers with funds, influence, and sometimes good taste. The landscape painter Jean-Baptiste Delarose (1612-1687), the head of the Toulon school of marine painters, was well known here. Toulon and Marseille were of great defensive and commercial importance to France; at the Toulon arsenal, a whole school of marinists was formed, who not only painted easel canvases, but also decorated the interiors of ships ^{[12, p. p.]}. In the 1720s, when Vernet arrived in Aix, he also worked and taught drawing in Toulon at school at the Arsenal, J. B. Delarose's son Pascal Delarose, as well as his father, who became a marine artist ^{[13, p. 12]}. It is possible that through Viali Vernet got acquainted with the work of these masters and their colleagues. Actually, Viali himself also sometimes painted seascapes.

Vernet's next teacher was Philippe Sauvant (1697-1792), a master of historical painting. Apparently, Vernet returned to Avignon to study with him. Sovan's main specialization was religious painting. He made compositions for many Southern French cathedrals and monasteries, located not only in Avignon, but also in Tarascon, Vence and their surroundings.

In 1732, Vernet received his first independent commission. The young artist attracted the attention of a local philanthropist and a great lover of painting, the Marquis de Caumont. He recommended the artist to his good friend the Marquise de Semian, the granddaughter of the famous Madame de Savigny, and even handed over the order for decorative paintings for her mansion. Either the Marquis made too generous an offer, or Vernet did not understand the conditions, but the works were done in abundance. The Marquise de Semian agreed to pay for only 12 desudeports, as she reported in a letter to the Marquis ^{[1, p. 8]}.

The Marquis de Caumont and the Comte de Kinson became the first patrons of the young Vernet. It was at their expense that the trip to Italy was carried out. Vernet had another way. He could go to Paris, enroll in the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture and try to win the Rome Prize, which gives him the opportunity to study for three years at the French Academy in Rome at the king's expense. However, this path was long and unreliable. The right to a retirement trip was given only by the first place, which still had to be won. Besides, it seemed illogical to many southern artists to go to Paris first if Italy was so close to them. Southern patrons used to send their own protégés to the Renaissance country, from whom they expected high-quality artistic products: both copies from great works of the past and their own canvases.

So, in the middle of 1734, Vernet went to Italy. He had to travel by sea, so Marseille became his first destination. It is believed that here, while waiting for the ship, Vernet was engaged in a full-scale study of the seascape. Of course, when the patrons sent Vernet to Italy at their own expense, they most likely expected that he would study to become a historical painter. He probably thought so himself. However, in Rome, Vernet is looking for a marine teacher, which means that during the journey he has finally decided on his vocation.

As O. Michel points out in his article on the artistic life of Rome in the XVIII century, craftsmen of various nationalities lived in the Eternal City, and therefore traditions of settling in "communities" and supporting young compatriots were very common ^{[14, p. 42-43]}. Verna also had someone to turn to from her closest friends. His old friend and countryman Francois Franck (1710-1793), the son of the Avignon architect Jean–Baptiste Franck (1683-1758), already studied at the French Academy in Rome. Frank Jr. was four years older than Vernet and entered the French Academy in Rome in 1732. Vernet, arriving in Rome on November 7, 1734, went to look for his friend the very next day. A. Marcel, a researcher at the beginning of the 20th century, published a letter from Vernet to Frank, his father, in which the young artist describes a meeting with a friend. Wanting to surprise his friend, Vernet did not identify himself, but asked to tell him that a certain abbot was waiting for Frank on the street. Vernet describes the meeting and further communication very emotionally. In addition, he reports that he wasted no time getting to work and that "that very evening (letter dated November 25, 1734 – E. A.) he will begin to paint at the Academy from a model" ^{[2, p. 43]}. Vernet adds that the young Franck had already introduced him to the French landscape painter Adrian Manglard (1695-1760), who would play a significant role in Vernet's development as a marine painter. Francois Franck accompanied Vernet to all the people to whom the landscape painter had letters of recommendation. He also introduced Vernet to Messire Malachi, in the world Joseph-Dominique Engenber (1683-1757), Archbishop of Carpentras since 1735. This man not only held a high position that allowed him to patronize artists, but also owned a large-scale collection of books, manuscripts, antiques, paintings and prints. Vernet wrote that messire "has everything one could wish for to study both architecture and painting" ^{[2, p. 44]}. Messire Malachi asked Vernet to "bring him the first works to be made, as he wanted to show them to Cardinal Corsini and many others whom he hosts" ^{[2, p. 44]}. From the very beginning, all this provided Vernet with a secure position in the Roman artistic environment.

Vernet's first teacher in Rome was not the Italian, but the French artist A. Manglard (1695-1760), who had lived in Rome since 1715. He was a native of Lyon, but his education turned out to be very original. He studied with Adrian van der Kabel (1631-1705), a representative of Romanism in Dutch art, who visited Italy and then naturalized in France. Manglard then managed to live and study in Avignon with Joseph-Gabriel Imber (1666-1749), a Cartesian monk who worked primarily in the field of religious painting. On the one hand, Manglard continued the tradition of the famous landscape painter Claude Lorrain with his idealized natural motifs and excellent knowledge of Italian monuments. On the other hand, being well aware of the peculiarities of the Dutch painting school, he was very interested in folk types and depicted in detail the sharp–featured scenes typical of the atmosphere of Italian ports. He managed to learn these qualities from his teacher Vernet, whose landscapes were never complete without a beautifully written and very expressive staff. Like Vernet later, Manglar was attentive to the conditions of nature and the changes taking place with the marine element. He has both calm and stormy seas, sunrise and sunset over the sea; in his paintings, both sunny and cloudy skies can be reflected in the water surface. In the painting "Scene in the Mediterranean harbor" (c. 1758, private collection), the sea is lost in a blue haze, creating a contrast with the dark walls of the fortress depicted on the left. Manglar looks like a master of aerial perspective, knows how to show lighting features depending on the time of day and weather. In the background, a dinghy departs from a moored ship, and in the first there are many characters. Two European-dressed men are buying fish from a woman, a mustachioed Turk is smoking a long pipe and saying something to a dog that has turned its face towards him. The rest are warming themselves by the campfire, dragging heavy loads and even loading two camels. The library of the School of Fine Arts and the Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris contain albums of preparatory drawings by Manglar. These are ships, human figures, including those in Turkish robes, and images of animals, which the artist must have been able to observe in the port. One of the most interesting sheets shows horses and camels from various angles, accompanied by drovers. This or similar albums were probably available to Manglar's students, including Vernet, who studied the vibrant folk types of the Italian coast with great curiosity.

Manglar enjoyed great fame in Italy and worked "for the entire Roman aristocracy" ^{[15, p. 844]}. Among his clients were the Duke of Parma and the King of Sardinia. This turned out to be very significant for Vernet, who needed recommendations and profitable acquaintances, although Vernet did not inherit the clientele from his teacher. O. Michel notes that if Manglar worked for the most noble Italian families, Vernet's clients included a lot of people of lower origin, and besides, foreigners ^{[15, p. 844]}.

Manglar was also a collector. He did not have a large collection, but he emphasized the landscape. It can be assumed that it was through Manglar that Vernet became acquainted with the work of Claude Lorrain, two of whose canvases were in Manglar's collection. His collection also included works by the Flemish masters Jan Frans van Bloemen (1662-1749) and Henrik Franz van Lint (1656-1729), the German Christian Raeder (1656-1729). All these three masters stayed in Rome for a long time until the end of their lives. Van Lint and Roeder were married to Italian women. It can be noted that these painters were contemporaries of Manglar, who apparently maintained a personal acquaintance with them. It is also known that in Manglar's collection there was at least "one painting by Rosa based on a plot from Ovid" ^{[10, p. 128]}.

2. K.-J. Vernet and the masters of the past in Italy

Strangely enough, the seascape in Italy of the previous 17th century did not have a large number of adherents among local craftsmen. The credit for its formation belongs to the Frenchmen N. Poussin (1594-1665) and C. Lorrain. The only Italian master who became famous in the marina area was Salvator Rosa (1615-1673), whose name was still widely known at the time of Vernet's arrival in Italy. Rosa had talented followers, one of whom was partly Vernet himself. F. Conisbee notes that Vernet's interest in Rosa's work was actively encouraged by customers who wanted to have works done "in the taste" of this famous master ^{[4, p. 790]}. E. Back-Saello, in turn, believes that that his fascination with Rosa had an important consequence for Vernet: He hurried to make a trip to Naples, discovering new sources of inspiration in the Southern Italian nature ^{[5, p. 32]}.

Salvator Rosa and Claude Lorrain turned out to be the most important of the masters of the past for Vernet. The first of them, who has a very original reputation as a "romantic robber", a native of Naples, began his creative activity "with small landscapes that he painted from nature, wandering through the mountains or sailing in fishing boats along the shores of the Bay of Naples" ^{[16, p. 6]}. From nature, Rosa captured not only natural motifs, but also sailors, fishermen, naked bathers and shepherds, as well as cows and horses.

After moving to Florence after 1640, Rosa began to paint large-format landscapes, translating the old motifs into a monumental scale. A remarkable example of this trend are the pandan paintings "Marina with a port" and "Marina with a Lighthouse" (1641, Palazzo Pitti, Florence). The first of these works measures 233 x 399 cm, and the second - 234 x 395.5 cm. Although it is believed that Rosa's work from life mostly took place in the early Neapolitan period of her work, it is known that to create these two epic paintings commissioned by the House of Medici, Marin Rosa traveled to Livorno for several days to "sketch from life the ships that stopped in the harbor and draw inspiration for the depiction of characters and episodes of marine life" ^{[17, s.p.]}. Rosa prefers tonal coloring, his painting is characterized by pasty, then fluidity, which was very in harmony with the "romantic" interpretation in the depiction of nature: towering cliffs with towering fortifications, iridescent sea, then permeated with light, then deep blue, clouds and clouds of various colors and textures.

Rosa influenced the landscape work of Marco Ricci (1676-1730) and Alessandro Magnasco (1667-1749), masters with whose work Vernet could also get acquainted. They inherited the "nervous" interpretation of the marine motifs of the Rose, often giving their compositions an even more dramatic character. We see the motif of a shipwreck turning into a real worldwide flood in Magnasco's painting "Prayer in the Waves" (c. 1735, Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, USA). Marco Ricci's painting "Waterfall" (1720, Accademia Gallery, Venice) has the same character. The motif of the storm at sea will become, as we will see, very significant in the work of Vernet himself, although he still will not present this topic with such exaltation as his Italian contemporaries.

Neither for Rosa, nor for his followers Ricci and Magnasco, seascape became a narrow specialization: these artists created a considerable number of works in other genres, primarily historical. Actually, the first landscape painter specializing in marinas was Claude Lorrain, a French master whose life turned out to be most closely connected with Italy. Researchers note that Lorrain's work is "literary", which is very characteristic of classicism; the space of his canvases is inhabited by mythological characters, and the names of paintings sound great historical and mythological names and titles. However, as S. Daniel wrote, Lorrain "has a consistent rearrangement of accents, which played a fundamental role in the discovery of nature as the sovereign subject of the image" ^{[18, p. 80]}. Although there is a large amount of idealization in the landscapes of this master, he "filters out" everything accidental by transmitting natural motifs, "composes" architectural compositions based on his knowledge of classical monuments, which is still combined with "the rediscovered appearance of wildlife every time" ^{[18, p. 82]}. A. Shastel In turn, he noted that Lorrain's "staging of compositions is very delicately presented, and the invention has a more hidden character" ^{[19, p. 151]} than other masters of classicism, for example, Poussin.

Lorraine especially often refers to the topic of diurnal changes in the state of nature, which can be observed in Vernet. Both masters were particularly attracted to the morning and evening atmosphere as the embodiment of expressive transitional states. At the same time, Lorrain, as an adherent of the classical worldview, which presupposes balance and harmony, practically does not encounter the motif of storms, shipwrecks, and chaos in the world of the water element. S. Daniel, analyzing the principles of compositional construction of Lorrain's paintings, identifies such points as the constancy of the horizon line, the large space allocated to the image of the sky, and the location the main light accent in such a way that it "creates the strongest perspective-dynamic effect and turns the space of the painting into a suite of infinite depth" ^{[18, p. 80]}. Such a strict architectural order was difficult to combine with the image of an angry and raging element.

Vernet, having become acquainted with the works of Salvator Rosa, Alessandro Magnasco, Claude Lorrain, and other masters, had the opportunity to develop his own style and repertoire of scenes in which the classical and "romantic" poles were balanced. If we talk about the repertoire, it becomes obvious when studying Vernet's notebooks. It contains data on 312 orders completed by him, including 811 works. Vernet's notebooks are kept in the Avignon Municipal Library. As we have already noted, in 1864 they were deciphered and published in a slightly abridged form by L. Lagrange. These are the records of a business and very busy person, necessary in order not to forget anything, to fulfill each order in accordance with the agreed conditions. Indeed, "the number of orders increased markedly every year ... to rise sharply in 1746, when Vernet received 15 orders, which included 44 canvases" ^{[6, p. 235]}.

The notes keep repeating the same plots, variations of which are ordered by people of different social and financial status. This is a storm, such "varieties" of it as "terrible storm" or "night storm", sunrise and sunset on the sea, sea in fog, sea in moonlight, sea with rocks, fishermen on the sea, sometimes there are such subjects as "the sea with a big ship" or with several ships. The repertoire includes views of seaside towns, in particular Naples, as well as villas and parks such as Tivoli, Ludovisi or Pamphili. Already from this list it is clear how fruitfully Verna managed to use the experience of his predecessors. Rocks and storms, characteristic of the masters of the "romantic" direction, side by side with architecturally constructed compositions embodying peace and harmony. Vernet's ability to stylistically adapt to the manner of the great masters of the past is evidenced by the fact that he was ordered pandans for his works and Roses, and Lorraine, and just canvases in their "taste" ^{[1, p. 327, 330, 332, 350]}.

E.B. Sharnov quite justifiably calls Vernet's works in the spirit of Salvator Rosa pastiches, i.e. variations on the theme of the famous master's work ^{[10, p. 143]}. In fact, Vernet did not literally imitate Lorraine, Rose, or anyone else. However, he uses the whole set of motifs characteristic of the Rose: rocks, waterfalls, dry, twisted trees, human figures in armor resembling "soldiers" or "robbers". This is also discussed in Vernet's notebooks, where all these motives are listed in detail. In 1746, two similar paintings were created for Vernet's regular client, the Marquis de Villette ^{[1, p. 327]}. One of them is located at the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts and bears the double name "Romantic Landscape", or "Landscape in the taste of Salvator Rosa". In front of us is a natural enclosed space, surrounded on all sides by the man-made architecture of powerful wild rocks. Streams of water are pouring out of the crevice, above which a gnarled tree trunk rises. Like the Rose, the real architecture visible in the distance becomes like a continuation of the rocky relief. However, while the motives are clearly recognizable, Vernet works in his own manner, much less exalted. His coloring is distinguished by the sophistication characteristic of the Rococo era: gentle transitions of warm and cold shades prevail in the depiction of rocks, water and sky, and the "robbers" or "soldiers" in the foreground lose their rude character, forming a gallant group around the female character who joined them.

A significant circumstance is the fact that the teacher Vernet A. Manglar has collected a rich collection of drawings. Referring to the catalog of the collection stored in the Vatican Library, Fr. Michel lists the following masters whose works were owned by Manglar: Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, Correggio, Tintoretto, Titian, Carracci, Guido Reni, Guercino, Dominichino, as well as Bourdon, Callot, Lafage, Poussin and Vouet. We should immediately note that one should not completely trust the catalogues of the XVIII century, since the scientific principles of attribution have not yet been developed and there are many errors. K. Pomyan notes that "the attribution of mainly Italian paintings caused concern" ^{[20, p. 198]}. With masters who were closer to the collector in time, for example, with Poussin, the situation was simpler. Manglar's collection consisted of 3,900 drawings. After the death of the master, this huge collection was partially sold in Italy, and partly sent to Paris. Vernet, visiting Manglard's studio, could gain a wonderful experience by studying these drawings and, possibly, making copies of them.

Since Poussin's name was widely known in Rome at the beginning of the 18th century, Vernet could not pass by the legacy of this great master. Moreover, the great classicist, the very talented master Gaspard Duguay (1615-1675), who lived in Italy all his life, specialized precisely in the field of landscape. In Poussin, as S. Daniel writes, "the element appears peaceful and included in a stately, slow, solemn system of harmonies, embodying the harmonious principle of nature" ^{[18, p. 75]}. Duguay inherits this approach to depicting nature from his teacher. He carefully studied nature, as evidenced by the pencil sketches filled with details. The researchers noted that Duguay simultaneously with Lorrain began to practice what was "later called plein-air painting" ^{[21, p. 78]}. At the same time, "any natural phenomena acquired from him (Duguet, E.A.) a significant and majestic appearance, and became a poem about nature" ^{[21, p. 78]}. Duguay, who is alien to Rose's drama, does not contrast nature with man, who becomes an admiring contemplator of the elements and at the same time an integral part of them. Even the French painter's scenes of thunderstorms or fires have a balanced and even serene character. This is what The Fire at Tivoli (1670s, Ingres Museum, Montauban) looks like. The fire and the smoke rising in a huge cloud do not disturb the tranquility of nature: the mountains rise majestically, the morning or evening dawn is breaking over the distant horizon. The horizontal rhythms of the background make the space of the painting endless and serene in its grandeur. In addition, the outlines of the smoke rising above the mountain mirror the contours of the tree depicted on the left, hinting at the unity of all processes occurring in nature, their naturalness and regularity. The people in the foreground are also in no hurry to escape; they are mesmerized by the action unfolding in front of them as if it were a play being played out in a magnificent theater of nature.

Sometimes, following the traditions of Poussin, Duguet populates his compositions with mythological and historical characters, but more often he does not set out "to achieve depth and significance of content [...] he paints serene landscapes with simple, unpretentious staff. His paintings are more suitable to the definition of a "pure" landscape than others" ^{[21, p. 92]}.

Curiously, the theme of fire is also found in Vernet's work. The GE and the Museum of Fine Arts of Bordeaux have two very similar paintings, differing only in details and size. The Hermitage version was attributed to Verna by I.S. Nemilova ^[9]. French experts consider the Bordeaux version to be a copy of Vernet's work by his student and assistant P.J. Wolera (1729-1790). This composition has the same amazing quality as Duguay's – a sense of the eternal and reliable constancy of the world in the face of the raging elements. In the foreground, a line of people leaving the burning port moves along the humpback bridge. They are carrying luggage, leading children and donkeys, and a cart is driving onto the bridge from the right edge of the painting. Apart from the character with his arms raised in amazement, no one shows exalted feelings. This is not an escape, but rather an organized evacuation. In addition, a proud and solemn silhouette of a ship with unfurled sails and fluttering flags looms against the background of raging flames – an unflappable witness to what is happening, calm as the night itself, enveloping the land and sea. An undated "Fire on the Tiber" (National Museum of Fine Arts, Valletta) has a similar character, where the crenellated tower inexorably and dispassionately "contemplates" the raging fire, resembling a giant at a night campfire.

Of course, we are not talking about the fact that Vernet imitated Duguay, or that the influence of Poussin's pupil on Vernet was particularly strong, but Duguay was known in the Roman artistic environment of the first half of the XVIII century and was an example of a master who, firstly, devoted himself entirely to landscape, and secondly, developed a number of techniques that turned out to be relevant for our hero.

There was another property that these craftsmen, separated by several decades, had in common. Duguay was "interested in various atmospheric phenomena, the vagaries of nature, its variability, and space" ^{[21, p. 77]}. The same can be said about Verne, who not only observed nature, but was also interested in science, studied the properties of the atmosphere, water, electricity, etc.

Thus, the tradition of landscape painting, which was developed in the Italian artistic environment of the previous 17th century, was well known to Vernet. Probably, since the greatest masters of landscape, who were in fact the founders of this genre, were French, Vernet must have felt his continuity with them and, accordingly, sufficient confidence that his chosen direction was promising and had potential, both in terms of further development of the genre, the formation of specializations within it, and in the sense of interest in it from representatives of the expert community and customers.

At the same time, Vernet was attentive to the local, Italian landscape tradition, choosing what was closer to himself and aroused the enthusiasm of his customers.

3. Vernet and his contemporaries, landscape painters

Bernardino Ferjoni (1675-1738) is one of the Italian marine painters who worked in Rome in the first half of the 18th century. The author of the "Artistic History of Italy" Luigi Lanzi pays a few words to the personality of this master: "At the beginning of the century, Bernardino Ferjoni showed in Rome a special skill in depicting the sea and port views, which he complemented with diverse and strange figures [...] His name was later eclipsed by two French painters: Adrian Manglard ... and his pupil Joseph Vernet, the master in the image of the air, he has a talent that far surpasses the talent of the teacher" ^{[22, v. 1, p. 570]}. A very small number of Ferjoni's works have come down to our time, which can be used to judge the manner of this master. The "View of Messina" (c. 1690, private collection) is most often reproduced, as this painting has recently been through auction ^[23]. In general, she is close to the calm and festive leaders of the Venetians. Ferjoni, however, places accents differently, making the main character of the canvas the sea. The friendly azure expanse merges in an embrace with the city located in an arc, the mountains in the background disappear into a blue haze. In the foreground there are several elegant boats and two luxuriously decorated ships, one of which, giving a signal to the earth, resembles the most magnificent Venetian galleys with its gilding. Vernet attended Ferjoni's workshop and could even take lessons from him.

Other contemporary landscape painters of Vernet include the Flemish master J. F. van Bloemen (1662-1749). This painter was born in Antwerp, however, having arrived in Rome in 1686-1687, he stayed here forever. In 1693, he married a Roman woman. Although van Bloemen visited the south of Italy, in particular, Naples and Sicily, the main theme in his work remained the views of the Roman Campagna. It is believed that this artist was particularly influenced by Poussin and Duguet, from whom van Bloemen made such exact copies that there is still confusion in the attribution of some paintings ^{[24, p. 331]}. Van Bloemen was no stranger to a natural approach to landscape painting, but "although he constantly made pen and ink drawings of the surroundings of Rome outdoors, which was part of his working method, most of the views he painted were imaginary and created in the workshop" ^{[24, pp. 331-332]}. Thus, van Bloemen continued the established practice of his predecessors. Researchers of this master's work, constantly mentioning Poussin and Duguet, say nothing about Salvatore Rosa, but it seems to us that even in the 1730s and 1740s, the most classicizing period in van Bloemen's work, the impact of the creative personality of this famous master is still felt.

We would like to draw your attention to the "Landscape of the Roman Campagna" (1736, private collection), which is very close to the above-mentioned "Landscape in the spirit of Salvator Rosa" by Vernet from the State Museum of Fine Arts. The same place is depicted from different sides – the ruins of the ancient city of Tivoli. At the same time, both artists use the same point of view on the panorama: in the foreground, bubbling streams of water foaming among the stones and staff figures are depicted, and then there is a view of rocks with ruins. Approximately the same amount of space is allocated to the sky on both canvases. The masters use similar compositional techniques. Vernet has a rock with a dead tree on his right, van Bloemen has a clump of trees, one of which, broken and tilted towards the water, repeats the favorite motif of the Rose. On the left of both canvases are towering cliffs with the remains of ancient structures. But Van Bloemen, nicknamed L'orizzonte (Horizon) by his contemporaries, prefers to give a breakthrough into the outer space in the middle of the painting. There are rolling hills and distant mountains in the haze of an approaching downpour. It is the mood and the state of nature that primarily distinguish the paintings of Vernet and van Bloemen. Although streams of water, overhanging driftwood and birds soaring in the sky create a sense of insecurity in Vernet's painting, van Bloemen's canvas is even more dramatic. Here, lightning zigzags out of the gathered clouds, deep shadows contrast with foam-white streams, and staff figures make it clear with gestures how terrified they are of the impending elements. The mood in van Bloemen's work gives a direct reference to the stormy, dramatic landscapes of Salvator Rosa, whereas in Vernet this tradition looks more reinterpreted and mediated. It is possible that Vernet, whose canvas dates back to 1746, knew the van Bloemen painting, executed ten years earlier and located in one of the private collections in Rome. This would explain the closeness of the compositional solution of both works.

A rare example of a master who created only seascapes is Pietro Tempesta (1637-1701). The real name of this master is Peter Mulir. Like van Bloemen, he came from Flanders. The leading figures for composing Tempesta's manner were G. Duguay, S. Rosa and C. Lorrain. A significant part of Tempesta's legacy is represented by "nocturnes", a passion for which will be very widespread in the 18th century. He was also impressed by the scenes depicting storms at sea. As many researchers have noted, the interest in "terrible" plots representing disasters and wrecks and contrasting with "beautiful" scenes of tranquility and prosperity anticipated a whole philosophical and aesthetic system, subsequently outlined by E. Burke in a 1757 treatise entitled "A philosophical study of the origin of our ideas of the sublime and beautiful." This English philosopher notes: "Everything that [...] is terrible to some extent or is associated with objects that inspire horror [...] is a source of the sublime; that is, it causes the strongest emotion that the soul is capable of experiencing" ^{[25, p. 72]}. Undoubtedly, the creators of such a kind of seascape as the "terrible storm" intuitively felt how such scenes could affect the viewer. This, we note, was well known before. During the reign of religious painting, an analogy to "shipwrecks" could be found in the depiction of the flood ^{[7, p. 404]}. The theme of the flood is found, for example, in the works of Poussin. Landscape painters of the late 17th and 18th centuries took upon themselves the function of bringing the plot closer to the modern viewer.

The painting "Shipwreck off the Rocky Coast" (Maritime Museum, Greenwich), which does not have an exact date, belongs to the category of such works. Vernet, describing in a message from 1773 the completed order for the image of a storm with a shipwreck, lists the most important components of this plot. He says: "I painted the sky with lightning, which is lost in thick clouds; a gap in the sky in the depths of the painting, illuminating the high mountains and the village at their foot, on which rain falls from above. There is a tower on a ledge of rock that serves as a lighthouse, and there, from the fortifications that surround it, signals are given to ships trying to [...] escape in the harbor or inlets between the rocks [...] the sea is very dark from the horizon and almost to the foreground of the picture, where waves, rocks and figures are brightly illuminated [...]; in the background of the painting, a ship shown from the side goes against the wind to enter the harbor; another ship, located closer to the foreground and shown from the bow, seems to be about to enter the same harbor; several fragments of a boat smashed against the rocks, which managed to bring a number of survivors ashore, are depicted on the foreground ..." ^{[3, v. 2, p. 113]}. Although the letter was written in France, two decades after Vernet's return to his homeland, it seems that the components of the plot have long become traditional for this genre, since it is precisely all of the above that we see on Tempesta's canvas. To the right is a high mountainous coast with a tower and rural buildings scattered here and there, illuminated by rays that broke through thunderclouds; two ships are fighting the wind, one of which is shown from the side and the other from the stern; in the foreground, powerful rocks are visible, against which foaming waves are crashing, and a man escaping on the wreckage of a boat or something like that.

Being a variation on this theme, the painting by Vernet (1745-1750, Mauritshuis, The Hague) depicts the Italian coast in stormy weather. There is also a rocky coast, a lighthouse tower, and a ship in distress. Just as in the description above, the foreground shows the survivors pulling the surviving dinghy ashore. There is also a glimmer of clear sky, in the swirling clouds there is a small hint of hope, the promise of salvation and rest.

Thus, developing the plot of the storm and the shipwreck, Vernet relies on the tradition that arrived in Italy with the Flemish craftsmen. Classical compositions such as Poussin's "Deluge" (1660-1664, Louvre, Paris) should not be completely discounted, where lightning, clouds, rocks, and a boat with fleeing people carry a charge of tragic energy close to the plot of a shipwreck, except that the water element is calm, without powerful and mighty waves.

Among Vernet's contemporaries there were two other artists whose importance in the development of landscape is difficult to deny. These are J.-P. Panini (1691-1765) and A. Locatelli (1695-1741). The first of them was, at the time of Vernet's arrival, Rome's most famous landscape painter. He painted palaces and villas of the Italian aristocracy with frescoes with landscape motifs, and since 1718 he was also a member of the Academy of St. Nicholas. St. Luke's and the Pantheon Academy of Virtues. In 1724, he married a relative of N. Fleigels, director of the French Academy in Rome, securing close ties with the French artistic community. Indeed, Panini was not only invited to teach perspective at the French Academy in Rome, but in 1732 he was accepted as a member of the Paris Academy of Painting and Sculpture. Panini mainly painted views of ancient and modern Rome, as well as depicted events and celebrations in the Eternal City, as exemplified by the canvas "Preparations for the celebration of the birth of the Dauphin of France in 1729 in Piazza Navona in Rome" (1731, National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin).

Vernet, who went to the French Academy in Rome to paint, probably attended Panini's class. It is possible that the influence of the personality of this master manifested itself in some types of Rome belonging to Verna. The National Gallery in London has a painting called "Sports competitions on the Tiber" (1750). This painting was commissioned by Vernet's regular client, the Marquis de Villette, who allowed it to be shown at the Paris Salon in 1750 ^{[26, p. 29]}. The original description of the order included such subjects as "Rural Fair" and "Rural holiday", however, according to L. Lagrange, the plots were eventually changed ^{[1, p. 330]}. The website of the National Gallery in London states that "the specific event in question has not been established, but river duels were a popular entertainment associated with important births and weddings, as well as visits by monarchs to cities" ^[27].

If we talk about the landscape, then we have a fairly well-known view in front of us. From the western bank of the Tiber, there is a panorama of the river and the towering castle of St. Peter. An angel with a bridge over a river. The block where the bridge rests is depicted fairly reliably, since we also see it in paintings by other artists. Many years later, he would be painted by Camille Corot in the painting "The Castle of St. The Angel and the Tiber" (the second quarter of the 19th century, Louvre, Paris). It can be seen that this place has changed little over the long decades.

The website of the National Gallery of London also provides information that the painting depicts the flag with the coat of arms of the then Pope Benedict XIV and the pennants of the Lambertini family, from which the pontiff descended. The curators of the painting tried to identify some of the characters. However, we are not so much interested in the specific personalities represented by the master, as in the transmission of the general festive atmosphere. The part of the shore depicted in the foreground is reserved, apparently, for the elite public. There is a platform for musicians on the left. The seats for the audience are located on top of the platform and below it. In the right part of the painting, in the immediate vicinity of the mooring boats, dressed-up ladies and gentlemen with children and dogs are strolling, there is a fairly dense crowd of spectators, fascinated by the spectacle. The "fight" itself is a rather curious performance. Half-naked fighters armed with wooden spears and shields stand on the prows of two boats turned towards each other, filled with rowers. It is likely that this holiday was one of a series of events in honor of the Jubilee Year 1750 announced by the pope, an assumption supported by the image of flags and pennants of Benedict XIV and his family. It is quite logical to link Vernet's interest in "festive" subjects with his acquaintance with Panini's work, the study of his works and creative techniques, inspired by his work on sketches of Roman monuments.

As for A. Locatelli, this master, who was born and lived all his life in Rome, had at one time a popularity comparable to that enjoyed by van Bloemen and Panini. Locatelli's first teacher was a little-known student of Adrian Manglar, and the second was Bernardino Ferjoni. Locatelli was influenced by the same famous figures: S. Rosa, G. Duguay, J.-F. van Bloemen. Locatelli painted marine and coastal scenes inspired by Rosa's work, and then developed his own type of "Arcadian", idyllic landscape focused on the work of Poussin and Duguet. However, the Locatelli views have become lighter, airy, and have acquired a rocaille color scheme, as exemplified by the painting "Landscape with Fishermen" (Maineti collection, Rome), where ancient ruins rising on a cliff are shrouded in light morning mist, and blue mountains stretch in the distance. It is known that Locatelli paid special attention to the figures on his canvases. Working with Biagio Puccini and Benedetto Luti, he painted figures under their guidance. Looking back at Poussin, Locatelli often introduces mythological characters into his paintings, who, due to their scale and significance of actions, turn landscape compositions into historical ones. Sometimes there are compositions with fishermen and peasants. It is difficult to say that Locatelli could have had any serious influence on Vernet. Locatelli was practically not interested in depicting the water element, and the attitude of the masters to the staff differed sharply, since Vernet very rarely turned to mythology, preferring to observe, sketch from nature, and then introduce real and very colorful human types into his canvases. However, Vernet and Locatelli are prone to a rocaille lightness of color, both succeed well in the effects of aerial perspective. In addition, both masters moved in the same circles, knew and studied the same painters of the past, perhaps they met in person, so it would be an omission not to mention this acquaintance.

It is interesting to try to establish which exhibitions Vernet may have participated in during his stay in Rome. The exhibition life of the Eternal City, although it was not too intense, still provided some opportunities for the craftsmen. There were two Academies in Rome at that time: the Academy of St. Luke, which had existed since the 14th century as a corporation and was reorganized in 1593 on the model of the Florentine one, as well as the Brotherhood of the Virtuous at the Pantheon, the Pontifical Academy of Literature and Fine Arts, founded in 1542. The first of them accepted, with rare exceptions, only historical painters. The "virtuous" enlisted various artists in their ranks: animalists, landscape painters, even those who specialized in the genre of flowers and fruits. On the feast of St. On March 19, Joseph had an exhibition opening, which the "virtuous" arranged under the portico of the Pantheon. The first such exhibition dates back to 1650. These exhibitions continued throughout the 18th century, but the first catalog was published only in 1750. We have not been able to find evidence that Vernet participated in these exhibitions, but his teacher Manglar was among the exhibitors. Maybe Vernet, as his student and a guest exhibitor, also showed some of his works there.

From 1610 to 1736, on St. Peter's Day. St. John the Baptist on August 29 in the cloister of the Church of St. John the Baptist. John the Beheaded was opening another exhibition. However, it was not the painters themselves who took part in it, but collectors, for whom it was an opportunity to show their treasures. Nothing prevents the assumption that individual works of Vernet, owned by private individuals, could be seen here.

From 1669 to 1750, an exhibition was held dedicated to the feast of the transfer of the House of Our Lady to Loreto. It took place in the church of San Salvatoro in Lauro.

As for public recognition, Vernet, despite his commitment to the "lower" landscape genre, was accepted into the Academy of St. Louis. Luke is in Rome. He joined the ranks of academicians in 1743. At this point, not too many of Vernet's compatriots had received such an honor. Other French painters admitted to the Academy include F. de Troyes, directors of the French Academy in Rome, A. Manglara and E. Parroselle. It seems that the honor did not have much effect on Vernet's daily life. However, in 1746, the artist received several royal commissions, in particular, one from the Queen of Spain and another from the King of Naples. In the second case, however, Vernet owed the order to the French envoy, the Marquis de Lopital.

Conclusion

So, Vernet fit perfectly into the Italian artistic environment. The fact that the landscape genre here owes much of its development to the French, starting with N. Poussin and C. Lorrain and ending with G. Duguay and A. Manglar, also played a role in this. Vernet successfully integrated himself into this system, supporting the "inheritance through landscape" of the leading position of the French art school. At the same time, the painter was actively interested in the experience of masters of other nationalities: the Flemish, who were very advanced in the field of seascape, as well as the Italians themselves. Vernet did not neglect both the study of the works of the masters of the past, whose works were present in numerous Italian private collections, and the society of his contemporaries, whose workshops he had the opportunity to visit in Rome.

In Italy, Vernet's creative style, his narrative repertoire, basic creative techniques, even preferences regarding the size and format of canvases, and the quality of artistic materials are fully developed, which is reflected in the master's notebooks. In addition, as E.V. Deryabina notes, collectors will later appreciate the works made by Vernet in Italy, as more successful and created at the time of actual accumulation and application of living experience ^{[8, p. 48]}.

Vernet spent almost twenty years in Italy. Here, success came to him, he found his place among colleagues and formed an international circle of customers. Here he managed to get a lot of impressions that remained with him for the rest of his life. The second part of our research will be devoted to the artist's travels in Italy and important new acquaintances.