Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Accomplished lithographer and draughtsman, publisher, architect and art academic. Born in Venice, he moved to Rome in 1740, where he lived for the remainder of his life. He worked on commission for: i.a., Pope Clemens XIII and his nephew, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Rezzonico. Piranesi’s graphic works comprised a synthesis and summary of the most significant trends and achievements of Venetian graphic art in the XVIII century. It was influenced by his background in architecture, penchant for archaeology and Ancient Rome, as well as the contemporary artistic milieu of Venice during his youth. Piranesi’s works are characterised by a meticulous attention to form and space, unlimited imagination and a perfectly honed craftsmanship. His most important etchings include the Carceri d’Invenzione series, depicting the dismal interiors of prisons, with their chaotic structures, winding staircases and corridors, and instruments of torture. He was also known for his Vedute di Roma, a series made up of 135 large-scale etchings of Rome in his day, including its ancients landmarks and ruins. He demonstrated a precise ability to document the ancient buildings of Rome in the same painstaking manner as he approached modern-day structures, effectively providing an inventory that was imaginative, one that didn’t precisely reflect reality at any given moment. Piranesi’s graphic works were published primarily by Bouchard. From 1761 onwards, Piranesi began publishing them independently. There are numerous editions of his collected works, each differing from the next in its technical details.