Piranesi - Artist of the Ruins

Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720-1778) was a trained architect, but became best known for his passionate advocacy of the beauty and nobility of Roman architecture as exemplified by its ruins.

Born and educated in Venice, he was trained in the architectural field and in stage design. A talented draftsman, he developed a flair for producing imaginative architectural fantasies. He was both a product of and a rebel against the extremely dramatic and showy Late Baroque style.

Piranesi's stunning large format copperplate etchings were theatrical and imaginative rather than archaeologically precise.

After he moved to Rome at age 20, Piranesi began producing scenes of the ruins and other sites for the tourist trade to make ends meet. Through his talent and passion for Roman architecture, he met and influenced many of the architects and theorists of his day. Piranesi, and his works, were instrumental in shaping the taste of the late 18th century.