Artists
Canaletto
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b. 1697 and died 1768
Giovanni Antonio Canal, Venice, better known as Canaletto, was a Venetian artist famous for his landscapes, or vedute, of Venice. He was also an important printmaker in etching. Much of Canaletto's early artwork was painted 'from nature', differing from the then customary practice of completing paintings in a studio. Some of his later works do revert to this custom, as suggested by the tendency of distant figures to be painted as blobs of color. Canaletto's early works remain his most coveted and, according to many authorities, his best. Later Canaletto became known for his grand scenes of the canals of Venice and the Doge's Palace. His large-scale landscapes portrayed the city's famed pageantry and waning traditions, making innovative use of atmospheric effects and strong local colors. For these qualities, his works may be said to have anticipated Impressionism.
Many of his pictures were sold to Englishmen on their Grand Tour, often through the agency of the merchant Joseph Smith. It was Smith who acted as an agent for Canaletto, first in requesting paintings of Venice from the painter in the early 1720s and then helping him sell his paintings to other Englishmen. Joseph Smith sold much of his collection to George III, creating the bulk of the large number of Canaletto’s works owned by the Royal Collection.