A Fantastic Vase

1746/1747

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Associated Names
Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Artist, Venetian, 1720 - 1778

The image shows a sketch of a large ornate urn or vase with sculptural figures around its rim. The color palette is primarily brown and black, with ink and wash techniques used for shading. The urn is centered in the composition, with the base at the bottom third and the figures encircling the upper rim. The background is plain, highlighting the detailed sketching of the urn and figures.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    pen and brownish black ink with gray wash over black chalk on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund

  • Dimensions

    overall: 23.8 × 14.2 cm (9 3/8 × 5 9/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1986.63.1

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(P&D Colnaghi & Co., London); acquired 1986 by NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1986

  • Old Master Drawings, Colnaghi, London, July 1986, no. 39

1994

  • Fanciful Flourishes: Ornament in European Graphic Art and Related Objects, 1300-1800, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1994.

1997

  • Building a Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1997-1998, no. 58.

2014

  • The Poetry of Light - La poesia della luce: Venetian Drawings from the National Gallery of Art, Museo Correr, Venice, Venice, 2014 - 2015, no. 88.

Bibliography

n.d.

  • Colnaghi, London: 7/1/86-7/19/86, no.39.

Inscriptions

lower right verso in black chalk: Guardi

Watermarks

single circle containing a profile of a bird on a triple mountain (similar but not close enough to Heawood 161-168)

Wikidata ID

Q64572345

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