1713-1782
A classical education combined with trips to Italy determined the distinctly classic overtones of Wilson's landscapes, heavily influenced by the works of Claude and Gaspar Poussin. His first known work was The Inner Temple After a Fire (1737, Tate). In 1746 he painted two landscapes for the Foundling Hospital. Meanwhile he also built a practice as a portrait painter in London. The turning point in his career was his Italian period, when he decided to devote himself exclusively to landscape painting. He visited Venice in 1750 and spent much time in Rome and the Campagna. When he returned to England in 1757, he continued to paint Italian landscapes and even Italianized English landscapes. He was a founder-member of the Royal Academy in 1768 and was appointed Librarian in 1776. Many of his paintings exist in several forms, and his works can be found in most museums in London and provincial England.
Lake Avernus
Hounslow Heath
Llyn-y-Cau, Cader Idris (exhibited 1774)
Viewing Near the Loggerheads, Denbigh (1765-70)