The House with the Peristyle [right]

Canaletto

1741

ink

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Baroque 18th Century

About this work

This drawing shows a big, fancy building with tall columns in front. The columns make a covered walkway, and there’s a crowd of people walking around. The scene looks like a city street with a bridge far off, and the sky is filled with wavy lines like water or clouds. The artist used a mix of fine lines and rough scratches to create shadows and texture. This was a way to make the scene look detailed without full color. Next, look up etching to see how artists like Canaletto made prints like this.