Landschap met ruïne met bogen 1613 - 1695

Nicolas Perelle created this etching, Landscape with Ruins and Arches, sometime in the second half of the 17th century. It’s a vision of the Italian countryside as seen through a French lens. Perelle never visited Italy but was familiar with the picturesque landscapes of other French artists. He takes artistic license here. He has transformed the architecture into picturesque ruins and rendered the landscape into a romantic vision. We can see how he took liberties by comparing his landscapes with traveler’s accounts from the period. Perelle was commissioned to make prints for the French court, but he also sold them to a wider audience. It was part of a growing market for landscape prints during this period. Publishers like Mariette, whose name is inscribed, were key to this market. By studying the history of printmaking, we can learn about the institutions of art and the artists that contributed to these rapidly changing markets.