The Piazza of Saint Peter's Seen through an Arch of the Basilica

1778/1779

Giacomo Quarenghi

Associated Names
Giacomo Quarenghi

Artist, Venetian, 1744 - 1817

The image shows an architectural space with an ornate archway leading to an open plaza. In the distance, there is a tall obelisk surrounded by statues and colonnades. The ceiling is intricately decorated with golden motifs, contrasting with the blue sky seen through the archway. The precise brushstrokes capture the detailed decorations. The color palette includes earthy tones for the architecture, gold for the ceiling, and blue for the sky. Geometric patterns on the floor direct the eye towards the plaza.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    pen and black ink and watercolor, over graphite and pinholes for guidelines, on medium wove paper

  • Credit Line

    William B. O'Neal Fund

  • Dimensions

    overall: 59.9 × 52.3 cm (23 9/16 × 20 9/16 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2002.36.1

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(sale, Christie's Old Master and 19th Century Drawings, New York, 23 January 2002, no. 69); (C. G. Boerner Inc., New York); purchased 2002 by NGA.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2004

  • Six Centuries of Prints and Drawings: Recent Acquisitions, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 2004 - 2005

2014

  • The Poetry of Light - La poesia della luce: Venetian Drawings from the National Gallery of Art, Museo Correr, Venice, Venice, 2014 - 2015, no. 121.

Inscriptions

inscribed by the artist in graphite with measurements in lower left and lower right margins

Wikidata ID

Q64572215

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