Giovanni battista piranesi italian archaeologist
Giuseppe Vasi found Piranesi's talent was much greater than that of a mere engraver.
He resided in the Palazzo Venezia and studied under Giuseppe Vasi, who introduced him to the art of etching and engraving of the city and its monuments. His brother Andrea introduced him to Latin literature and ancient Greco-Roman civilization, and later he was apprenticed under his uncle, Matteo Lucchesi, who was a leading architect in Magistrato delle Acque, the state organization responsible for engineering and restoring historical buildings.įrom 1740, he had an opportunity to work in Rome as a draughtsman for Marco Foscarini, the Venetian ambassador of the new Pope Benedict XIV. Piranesi was born in Venice, in the parish of S. He was the father of Francesco Piranesi and Laura Piranesi. Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720 –1778) was an Italian Classical archaeologist, architect, and artist, famous for his etchings of Rome and of fictitious and atmospheric "prisons". The focal points of his research work are the issues raised by 17th and 18th century and contemporary Italian art. He is curator at the Istituto Nazionale per la Grafica in Rome and lectures at different Italian universities. Please contact us to request further information or additional images.ĪUTHOR: Luigi Ficacci studied Art History in Rome under Guilio Carlo Argan.