Antonio Canaletto

Biography

Giovanni Antonio Canal (called Canaletto) was born in Venice in 1697.

He studied under his father and, following in his footsteps, first confined his attention to painting theatre sets. Canaletto's first trip to Rome in 1719 changed the path of his career. Having spent some time drawing and copying the antiquities of the city he returned to his native town in 1720 and occupied himself exclusively in producing views of Venice. Painted with a great truth to nature, these veduta were, and continue to be, highly esteemed and the work for which he is best known.

By 1726, Canaletto was already working for the English market and he arrived there in 1746. He remained in England for a period of two years, spending short intervals in Venice. Although Canaletto painted some striking views, he had some difficulty in establishing himself.

During and after his English period, Canaletto's work lost the breadth and freedom of his earlier work, becoming much harder and tighter. Many of his paintings have been engraved by Vincentino, and Canaletto has himself etched thirty-one plates of Views In Venice. His later works were imitated by English painters such as Scott and Marlow.  Canaletto died in Venice in 1768.