Giovanni Battista Piranesi

(Italian, 1720–1778)

Giovanni Battista Piranesi was an Italian draftsman, printmaker, and architect. Famed for his Neoclassical etchings, Piranesi used ancient Greek and Roman ruins as inspiration to create macabre dungeon scenes filled with elaborate contraptions. “I need to produce great ideas,” the artist once stated. “And I believe that if I were commissioned to design a new universe, I would be mad enough to undertake it.” Born on October 4, 1720 in Mogliano Veneto, Italy, he went on to study Latin, ancient Roman culture, architecture, and later etching under Giuseppe Vasi at the Palazzo Venezia. These studies, combined with his subtle use of gravure techniques, granted his etchings believable depth and structural perspective. Piranesi’s depictions of Rome quickly garnered him commissions from members of the clergy and aristocracy, and would influence later generations of artists including the Surrealists. Piranesi died on November 9, 1778 in Rome, Italy. Today, his works are in the collections of the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, the Louvre Museum in Paris, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, among others.

Related Categories

Drawings and Works on Paper, Old Masters, Prints and Multiples

Related Artists

Etienne Louis Boullee, Canaletto, Francesco Piranesi, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, Giuseppe Vasi

Most Expensive Artwork Sold at Auction

Invenzioni Capric di Carceri (14 works), 1758 - 1760
Sold price: 459,750 USD

Giovanni Battista Piranesi Artworks

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi (8,868 results)
Two Roman Views, 1758

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Two Roman Views, 1758

Sale Date: September 28, 2023

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[a] Vasi, Candelabri, Cippi, Sarcofagi,..., 1778

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

[a] Vasi, Candelabri, Cippi, Sarcofagi,..., 1778

Sale Date: September 28, 2023

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Veduta della Fontana di Trevi anticamente..., 1751

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Veduta della Fontana di Trevi anticamente..., 1751

Sale Date: September 28, 2023

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Vasi, Candelabri, 1778

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Vasi, Candelabri, 1778

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Differentes vues de quelques restes de..., 1778

Sale Date: October 4, 2023

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Differentes vues de quelques restes de..., 1778

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Der Treppenaufgang mit den Trophäen, 1761

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Der Treppenaufgang mit den Trophäen, 1761

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta del Lato posteriore del Mausoleo di...

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta della Villa Estense in Tivoli", 1773

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta del Castello dell'Acqua Paola sul..., 1751

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta interna dell'antico Tempio di Bacco..., 1767

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta del Ponte Salario", 1754

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Vue des restes du Pronaos de l'edifice, que , 1778

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta del Sepolcro della Famiglia Plauzia per...

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Grotteschi: Das Grab Neros, 1750

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Grotteschi: Das Grab Neros, 1750

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Vue des deux Restes des Rangs de Colonnes..., 1778

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta del Piano Superiore del Serraglio..., 1757

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta della Cascata di Tivoli", 1766

Sale Date: October 4, 2023

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta del Sepolcro di Cajo Cestio", 1755

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Avanzi di un antico sepolcro oggi detto la..., 1776

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta del Campidoglio di Fianco", 1775

Sale Date: October 4, 2023

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta della Facciata della Basilica di S...., 1750

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Veduta del Palazzo fabbricato sul Quirinale , 1749

Sale Date: October 4, 2023

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Giovanni Battista Piranesi

"Arco di Settimio Severo", 1759

Sale Date: October 4, 2023

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