THE BAY OF NAPLES

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. Dr. Amy Golahny, professor of art, will give a presentation on artist G.L. Brown at 4:00 PM on Wednesday December 3, 2003, in the Fine Arts Lecture Hall. 

 George Loring Brown (1814‑1889) was well-known and immensely successful during his lifetime as a painter of New England landscape and Italian scenery.

 His most popular subject was the Bay of Naples.  While Brown painted this view more than twenty times, only a few of his views are known today.  His 1869 rendition, “Near Sunset:  Bay of Naples” is in possession of the Lycoming County Historical Museum and, until now, never published.  Brown depicted the enduring view of the bay from Virgil’s tomb, instantly recognizable and laden with classical allusion; this was the view praised by American travelers, including Henry James, Herman Melville, and William Dean Howells. However, the surrounding area would soon become developed with modern transportation and dense building. Tranquility would be found at the vantage point, Virgil's tomb, but not near the shore. Thus, the painting recalls a quieter moment in the history of Naples.

 The talk is open to all students and faculty and the Williamsport community.