Showing at the British Museum, room 90 until 28th April is ‘In search of Classical Greece,’ showing drawings and paintings from Edward Dodwell and Simone Pomardi. In the early 19th century Napoleon occupied Rome, so travellers turned to Greece to conclude their Grand Tours across Europe. The amateur Dodwell and professional artist Pomardi travelled together in 1805-6, through the remains of Greece that Byron had described as ‘Fair Greece, sad relic.’ This was the same time that Lord Elgin’s agents were in Athens and the show includes some of the casts that they made from the Athenian monuments.
Having learned about Greece from ancient texts the sad reality of the country when they visited was something of a shock. The museum has over 1000 images from their trip and is displaying seventy, many of them watercolours that have never been seen in public before. From a detailed panorama to detailed closeups the pair have recorded sights and buildings that have now changed or completely disappeared.
Until 28th April
Free entry
British Museum
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