1688
ink
paper
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Illusionistic Architecture for the Vault of San Ignazio is a 1688 ink by Andrea Pozzo, a Baroque work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This drawing shows a fake ceiling that looks like a real building. You see arches, columns, and windows stacked in layers, all receding into the distance. The lines are precise, and the gray tones make the space feel deep and three-dimensional. The trick here is that this isn’t a real building—it’s painted on a flat surface to look like one. The artist used perspective to make it seem endless. Look up cross-hatching next to see how artists create depth with lines.
Andrea Pozzo (Italian: ; Latinized version: Andreas Puteus; 30 November 1642 – 31 August 1709) was an Italian Jesuit brother, Baroque painter, architect, decorator, stage designer, and art theoretician.
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