Giovanni Antonio Canaletto (1697 - 1768), View from Somerset Gardens looking towards London Bridge, 1746 - 1755 (circa)
Giovanni Antonio Canaletto (1697 - 1768), View from Somerset Gardens looking towards London Bridge, 1746 - 1755 (circa), The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust) © The Courtauld

View from Somerset Gardens looking towards London Bridge

Giovanni Antonio Canaletto

In 1746 Canaletto travelled to England from Venice, and over the following decade produced a rich record of mid-Georgian London, making drawings for the market. In this elaborately finished work, drawn as a collector’s item, the city of London is seen from above the terrace of Old Somerset House, designed by Inigo Jones in the 1630s. Stairs lead to the Thames, thronging with river traffic. In the far distance stands Old London Bridge, while St. Paul’s cathedral towers above a skyline dotted with church spires. 

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Two men sit across from each other at a table covered with a brown tablecloth, playing cards. Both men wear overcoats and hats, and the man on the left smokes a pipe. They sit inside a wooden building. i Paul Cézanne (1839-1906) The Card Players, around 1892-96, The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust)

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