View of the Piazza del Quirinale (Piazza di Monte Cavallo), Rome, with the Quirinal Palace to the right, the statues of the Horse Tamers (Castor and Pollux) in the centre, and elaborate carriages 1750

Giovanni Battista Piranesi made this print of the Piazza del Quirinale in Rome sometime in the mid-18th century. It pictures the piazza as a theatrical stage, using sharp contrasts of light and shadow to heighten the drama. Piranesi was above all interested in the public role of art and architecture. He presents the viewer with a sweeping vista of Roman power and antiquity. The eye is immediately drawn to the statues of the Horse Tamers, symbols of strength and mastery, set against the backdrop of the Quirinal Palace, a seat of papal authority at the time. The elaborate carriages suggest the comings and goings of powerful figures. Piranesi made many such prints of Rome, and they were acquired by wealthy Europeans making the Grand Tour. These images reinforced Rome’s status as a center of cultural and political power, as it had been since antiquity. To understand Piranesi, we need to understand the social and political role of art in 18th-century Europe. Through careful research into the institutions that shaped his world, we can better understand how his images functioned within it.