Charles Rennie Mackintosh (Scottish, 1868-1928) Pedestal, Siena Cathedral 32 x 24.2 cm. (12 5/8 x 9 1/2 in.)Charles Rennie Mackintosh (Scottish, 1868-1928)Pedestal, Siena Cathedral signed with initials, dated and inscribed 'SKETCH OF PEDESTAL/SIENA CATHEDRAL/C.R.M./MAY 1891.' (lower centre and lower right)pencil32 x 24.2 cm. (12 5/8 x 9 1/2 in.)ExhibitedToronto, Art Gallery of Ontario, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, 1868-1928: A memorial exhibition, 18 November - 31 December 1978, cat.no.27This is sketch of the pedestal at the entrance of The Chapel of Saint John the Baptist in The Cathedral of Siena.When Mackintosh was just 22 years old, he achieved his first major professional success when he won a Travelling Studentship that had been set up by the Trustees of the Alexander Thomson Memorial for prospective British architects, aged between 18 and 25, of 'approved moral character'. Mackintosh spent three months travelling through Italy. He was in Siena from the 10th to the 19th May 1891 and spent most of is time sketching in and around the Cathedral. His contact with Italian art and architecture provided both aesthetic and critical stimulation at a formative period in his career. He brought back a portfolio of drawings and watercolours which developed his reputation as an artist.In October 1891, a selection of these Italian watercolours were displayed in the Glasgow School of Art Club Annual Exhibition. James Guthrie was reputedly so impressed with the work, he exclaimed to Fra Newbery, Director of the School, "but hang it Newbery, the man ought to be an artist". (Cited to R. Eddington Smith, Secretary of the Glasgow School of Art Club in a letter to The Glasgow Evening Times, 17 February 1933, p.6).