ANTONIO DA CANAL, IL CANALETTO The Portico with the Lantern.
Etching, circa 1740. 303x435 mm; 12x17 1/8 inches, wide margins. Third state (of 3), with the letters and number lower left. Remondini, letter R watermark (Bromberg 53-54). A brilliant, richly-inked impression with strong contrasts and with crisp, partially inky plate edges.
Canaletto (1697-1768), whose work embodies the city of Venice perhaps more than any other artist, was a highly fashionable painter already known primarily for his topographical views that were popular among Europeans (particularly English visitors) on the Grand Tour, when he embarked on a series of some 30 Venice-inspired etchings in the early 1740s. This project was encouraged by and mostly financed by Joseph Smith, the British consul to the Venetian Republic, who also acted as Canaletto's agent on behalf of foreign collectors. The Portico with the Lantern typifies Canaletto's approach to his Venice etchings, most of which are capricci or imaginary views, blending familiar Venetian vernacular architectural elements--the vine covered portico--with classical motifs such as the triumphal arch and temple at the right. DeVesme 10; Bromberg 10.
