Perspective View (Stage design)

The capriccio, or perhaps an early study for a theatre set, evokes a fantastic Capitol, seen through a loggia with four arches, framed by Corinthian columns and enlivened by golden ornaments and statues. The fulcrum of the composition at the top of the stairs is an equestrian monument that recalls Marcus Aurelius, inserted under a triumphal arch. The work may have been done immediately after Canaletto’s stay in Rome ((1718-1720), since it deploys a veritable repertoire of ancient ruins. The attribution to the artist, however, has been widely debated by scholars. The painting entered the Academy under the name of Canaletto, through the bequest of painter Domenico Pellegrini (1840).Stefano Susinno, finally, recognized it as a unique example in Canaletto’s oeuvre, on account of the drawing, the points of light and similarities with a capriccio preserved at the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice and with a second painting, of the same dimensions, preserved in Cologne [V.R.]