The sketch feels more warm and organic ink strokes loosely suggest the presence of shadows. In the preparatory drawing, loose ink splashes carve clouds out of negative space, whereas in the print they are sharply defined. In a comparison of initial study and completed print, the curator places both iterations of “View of the Interior of the ‘Basilica,’ Looking West” side by side.ĭespite being the same scene drawn by the same artist, the two drawings give off completely different vibes. Similar to its counterpart “Artists at Work,” “Piranesi’s Paestum” places particular focus on Piranesi’s creative process. The Italian’s works are evenly spaced around the room, encircling the viewer, as if the viewer is a bystander in one of Piranesi’s compositions. The way the exhibit is curated mirrors the structured composition of Piranesi’s studies. The artist also employs atmospheric perspective as his structures recede into the background, which he indicates by using a lighter ink wash and more sparse chalk lines. This is perhaps best seen in “Interior of the ‘Temple of Neptune,’ Looking East,” wherein rows of two-tiered pillars plunge diagonally across the page and into the ink-wash background. Piranesi tends to place his vanishing points off-center to vary his compositions and provide a more dynamic view of his subject matter. Piranesi’s experimentation with perspective and multiple vanishing points is the key selling point of the series. The paper has a rich and varied texture, creased and stained with age, mirroring the crumbling remnants of Paestum. Black and brown ink, pen and black chalk are spattered onto toned paper. Likely from imagination, his portrayals of the figure show an incredible ability to visualize a setting and translate that setting into marks on the page.įor most of the drawings in the series, Piranesi employs largely the same techniques. Piranesi populates his architectural studies with portrayals of figures and animals, enlivening his environments with an organic quality. The exhibit is both a love letter to Doric architecture and a masterclass in perspective drawing, providing a glimpse into Paestum from – quite literally – Piranesi’s perspective. “Piranesi’s Paestum,” currently on view at the Cantor Arts Center, displays some of Piranesi’s rare preparatory drawings and sketches from the series. In 1777, Italian printmaker and architect Giovanni Battista Piranesi visited the ancient Greek city of Paestum on the Gulf of Salerno, creating a series of studies focusing on three Doric temples in the city. Piranesi’s powerful rendition of Doric architecture.
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