A love letter to Richard Wilson (and tricky restorations)

See the consequences of artist Richard Wilson’s 18th-century rule breaking and the challenges it presents for restorers today.

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Curator Mary McMahon talks to Conservation Fellow Maria Carolina Peña-Mariño about the challenge of restoring Richard Wilson's painting The Valley of the Dee, with Chester in the Distance of about 1761.

Despite his name not being well known today, Wilson was an important influence on British artists Constable and Turner.

Maria's meticulous cleaning of the painting's surface revealed huge 'drying' cracks - the result of Wilson breaking the rules of oil painting technique.

Applying layers of oil paint quickly and loosely - possibly even to create a 'plein air' effect, Wilson worked while the underlayers were still wet.

Maria talks us through Wilson's experimentation and the daunting process involved in reinstating his glowing cross-border panorama.

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