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A Caprice Landscape with Ruins

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

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This is an imaginary scene – a caprice – inspired by buildings in Italian cities and the surrounding countryside. It shows ruins from the classical past alongside contemporary architecture. Dwarfed by a crumbling arched portico, a small group of figures – tourists and residents of the small town in the distance, perhaps – are captivated by the statue of a lion, a symbol of Venice. The church spires and bell towers of the small town pierce the hazy sky. Views of imagined landscapes were popular during the eighteenth century. Canaletto and Guardi painted similar ones, but this work seems nearer to the style of Bellotto, who came from Venice and travelled extensively around the Italian peninsula, producing views of Rome, Florence and Verona.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

A Caprice Landscape with Ruins

Date

1740-1800

Medium

Oil on canvas

Measurements

H 54 x W 74.3 cm

Accession number

NG135

Acquisition method

Bequeathed by Lt.Col. J.H. Ollney, 1837

Work type

Painting

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

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