Canaletto
Imaginary View of Padua

ArtistItalian (Venetian), 1697–1768
CultureItalian
Titles
  • Imaginary View of Padua
  • Vedute altre prese da i luoghi altre ideate da Antonio Canal
Datec. 1735 - 1746
Place depictedPadua, Italy
MediumEtching, state I/III
DimensionsPlate: 11 5/8 × 16 7/8 in. (29.5 × 42.9 cm)
Sheet: 15 × 21 in. (38.1 × 53.3 cm)
Credit LineMuseum purchase funded by the Alice Pratt Brown Museum Fund and The Brown Foundation, Inc.
Object number95.323
Non exposé

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Object Type
Description

Born in Venice, Canaletto received his early training from his father, a theatrical-set designer. In the early 1740s, Canaletto turned to the previously unexplored medium of etching and produced a series of 30 works, the title of which states: "Views, some representing actual sites, others imaginary."


 In fact, only five of these prints depict Venetian vistas. The remainder, such as this imaginary view of the city of Padua, are idealized illustrations of sites along the Brenta River. During his brief career as an etcher, Canaletto developed a unique and highly organic graphic style. He skillfully captured the play of light on buildings and the natural terrain, and he handled line with a finesse unseen in his paintings. The etchings comprising this series were sold individually or published in volumes. Imaginary View of Padua is a first-state impression with bold contrasts between the light and dark passages. Canaletto burnished the plate for the published editions, thus lessening the contrasts but ensuring consistency within a large edition. Early impressions such as this one are of greatest rarity.


 


Provenance Research Ongoing Exhibition History"Acid on Metal: The Art of Etching and Aquatint," Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, September 11–November 27, 2011.
Inscriptions, Signatures and Marks
The etching is signed in black ink, center under image: "A. Canal f".
Catalogue raisonnéBromberg 11, i/iii

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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