FRANCESCO GUARDI | An architectural capriccio with a church to the left

Crisnoy de Lyonne (from H. Shickman Gallery label on backboard);
Sale, New York, Sotheby's, 25 January 2012, lot 102

San Francisco, SFO Airport Museum, All Roads Lead to Rome: 17th-19th Century Souvenirs from the Collection of Piraneseum, 2017 (reproduced, pp. 8-9)

Hinge mounted to a modern decorative mount. The upper right corner has been very sensitively made up and is only noticeable upon very close inspection. The drawing remains in otherwise good condition with the ink and wash fresh. There are two small areas, of what appears to be bluish gouache to the lower half of the right edge. Sold in a modern giltwood frame.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Throughout his career, Guardi made paintings of views both real and imaginary, in equal measure. Indeed, his fantasy views include some of his most alluring compositions.  This particularly attractive and atmospheric drawing, with its free handling and great sense of light and movement, depicts one such capriccio, which is also known through a variant drawing in the Victoria and Albert Museum¹ and through two painted versions, one in the Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon, and the other in the National Gallery, London.²  Although the domed construction is derived in part from Palladio's unexecuted design for the Rialto Bridge, the other buildings seem to be pure imagination, as is the composition as a whole. In terms of details, it is the National Gallery painting (fig. 1) that is the closest to the present drawing.  Both it and the Victoria and Albert Museum drawing are considered by Morassi and others to be late works, dating from circa 1770-1780, and that would also appear to be the case for this drawing.   At this late stage in his career, Guardi was a total master of light, and of the media with which he drew.  His totally confident and seemingly effortless lines combine with copious amounts of judiciously applied wash, to create an image of immense beauty.  Whether the view is real or imaginary, Guardi's drawings of this period capture the essence of Venice, her buildings and her light.

^1. A. Morassi, Guardi, I Disegni, Venice 1975, p. 168, no. 509, reproduced fig. 508
^2. A. Morassi, Guardi, I Dipinti, Venice 1993, vol. I, p. 450, nos. 754, 753, reproduced vol. II, figs. 689, 690