Der runde Turm
The Round Tower
Foto: Kunstpalast - Horst Kolberg

The Round Tower, 1761

Series title originalCarceri d'Invenzione
Series titleImaginary Prisons (sheet 3)
ArtistGiovanni Battista Piranesi, Mogliano 1720–1778 Roma
Etching
State/print versionIV/VI
Panel dimensions54,7 × 41,4 cm
Sheet dimensions74,2 × 54,5 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 1989-32c
de