St. Paul's Cathedral

St. Paul's Cathedral

Canaletto, ca. 1754

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Artist: Canaletto (Venetian, 1697–1768)
Medium: Oil on canvas
Size: 20 1/2 × 24 1/4 inches (52.1 × 61.6 cm)
Museum: Yale Center for British Art
Rights: CC0 — no rights reserved

St. Paul’s Cathedral appears in many of Canaletto’s views of the Thames, but this is the only one to show the entire building from close range. It was painted for one of Canaletto’s most important patrons in England, Thomas Hollis, who commissioned many views of London from the artist.

This view of St. Paul’s represents the church’s architecture as a backdrop for the social activity taking place in the plaza and the street, with various figure groups in conversation and elegant carriages leaving or entering the scene. It is the same size and format as a view of the Campidoglio in Rome that Hollis commissioned from Canaletto (private collection). The artist and patron clearly meant for the two spaces in the two great cities to stand in comparison with one another.

Text: Yale Center for British Art.

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