CAMILLO DE VITO (ITALIAN, 19TH CENTURY)

At the end of the 18th Century and throughout the 19th Century numerous Neapolitan painters specialized in the production of gouaches reproducing the bay of Naples and its surroundings. One of the favorite themes for both artists and their clients were the nocturnal eruptions of Vesuvius, volcano symbol of Naples. The present works are typical examples in this vein produced by Camillo de Vito, who was particularly prolific in this genre, depicting numerous eruptions including the spectacular one of 1822, when it is said that ashes and lapilli reached a height of 3,000 meters (A. Tecce, ‘Le eruzioni del Vesuvio nelle ‘gouaches’ del XVIII e XIX secolo’, in Gouaches napoletane del Settecento e dell’Ottocento, exhib. cat., Naples, Museo Pignatelli, 1985-1986, p. 96, no. 1.13, ill.).