Collection Online as of June 28, 2022

River Landscape with View of St. Peter's Basilica

after 1660

circle of Giovanni Francesco Grimaldi

(Italian, 1606-1680)

Italy, 17th century

Pen and brown ink over traces of black chalk; framing lines in graphite

Support: Cream(3) laid paper

Sheet: 11.4 x 26.5 cm (4 1/2 x 10 7/16 in.)

Delia E. Holden Fund 1978.21

Location

not on view

Description

With much of Saint Peter’s Basilica obscured by the energetic lines that form the foliage, the building appears integrated into the landscape in this river scene. What stands out is the massive dome jutting from the tree line. Designed by Michelangelo in 1547, the dome was completed in 1590, after his death. Michelangelo made many contributions to the architecture of Rome, but it was the dome of Saint Peter’s that fundamentally altered the city’s iconic skyline. Although loosely sketched and without fine detail, the dome in this drawing remains immediately recognizable as an emblem of Rome.

Provenance

Richard Cosway, London (according to label from Schaeffer Galleries; Lugt 628-9). William Esdaile, London (Lugt 2617, lower right, inscribed in brown ink); his sale, Christie and Manson, London, Part III, 18-25 June 1840 (according to departmental cataloging sheet). Eric H. L. Sexton (Lugt 2769c, verso, lower right, in violet ink). Mrs. Hanns S. Schaeffer, New York (according to departmental card); [Schaeffer Galleries, New York]

Exhibition history

CMA, Concept, Dogma, and Feeling: Italian Drawings 1550-1650 (Aug. 27-Oct. 20, 1991).

CMA, Views of Rome from the Permanent Collection (Nov. 1, 1988-Jan. 8, 1989).

CMA, Italian Drawings from the Permanent Collection (Dec. 15, 1986-Mar. 1, 1987).

CMA, Visions of Landscape (Feb. 17-Mar. 21, 1982).

CMA, The Draftsman's Eye: Late Italian Renaissance Schools and Styles (Mar. 6-Apr. 22, 1979), no. 44, illus., pp. 15, 56.

CMA, "Year in Review for 1978," cma Bulletin 66 (1979), p. 43 no. 44, illus. p. 13.

Houston, University of St. Thomas Art Department, Builders and Humanists: The Renaissance Popes As Patrons of the Arts (1966), no. 26 (or 6?), illus.

Year in Review: 1978. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 13-March 18, 1979).

The Draftsman's Eye: Late Italian Renaissance Schools and Styles. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 6-April 22, 1979).

Visions of Landscape: East and West. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (February 17-March 21, 1982).

Italian Drawings from the Permanent Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 15, 1986-March 1, 1987).

Concept, Dogma and Feeling: Italian Drawings 1550-1650. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 27-October 20, 1991).

Master/Apprentice: Imitation and Inspiration in the Renaissance. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 13, 2019-February 23, 2020).