Frontispiece, 1761

Series title originalCarceri d'Invenzione (folio 1)

Series titleImaginary Prisons (sheet 1)

ArtistGiovanni Battista Piranesi, Mogliano 1720–1778 Roma

Etching

State/print versionVII/IX

Panel dimensions54,3 × 41,4 cm

Sheet dimensions73,7 × 54,2 cm

Status

not on display

About the workThe Italian artist Giovanni Battista Piranesi, who also worked as an archaeologist and architect, published a series of pictures with menacing architectural backdrops under the title “Carceri d’invenzione”: according to this ambiguous title, they are both “imaginary prisons” and “prisons of the imagination”. Whether the vast architecture is supposed to crush the imagination or inspire new inventions with its airy vistas depends entirely on the viewer.

AccessionAcquisition 1989

Provenance[...]; 15.8.1989 angekauft von der Kunsthandlung Helmut H. Rumbler, Frankfurt

Inventory numberK 1989-32a

Contact

sammlung@kunstpalast.de

Permalink

https://sammlung.kunstpalast.de/en/objects/921613/frontispiz

Expand