Lot 89
  • 89

Circle of Giovanni Antonio Canal, called Canaletto

Estimate
80,000 - 120,000 USD
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Description

  • Circle of Giovanni Antonio Canal, called Canaletto
  • Venice, a view of the Grand Canal looking West towards the Church of the Santa Maria della Salute
  • oil on canvas

Condition

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This work has been restored and should be hung in its current condition. It is painted on a fairly open weave piece of canvas with an old lining. The paint layer is stable, and the surface is attractive. The varnish is very fluorescent under ultraviolet light, but it seems that retouches can be identified accurately. Retouching can be seen throughout the sky addressing some cracks and the texture of the canvas. It is possible that there has been some slightly more concentrated repainting in the blue sky and in the whitest part of the cloud in the center of the right side, designed to eliminate the cracking in the sky. The condition seems to be very good in the architecture and foreground. There is some strengthening in the darkest colors of the shadowed areas of the buildings on the left and a few spots in the figures on the large yacht on the left. Despite the retouching in the sky, the work is in good condition in general.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

Catalogue Note

This painting follows Canaletto's composition in the Royal Collection at Windsor Castle, London. 1 The Windsor picture was one of the fourteen paintings by Canaletto from the collection of John Smith to be engraved by Antonio Visentini and published in 1735, thus providing a terminus ante quem for the design.

1. W.G. Constable and J.G. Links, Canaletto, Giovanni Antonio Canal 1697-1768, 2nd ed., Oxford 1989, vol. II, pp. 262-263, cat. no. 161, reproduce vol. II, plate 36, fig. 161.