Fantasy of a Magnificent Wall Monument 1764 - 1766

Curator: Oh, wow, look at this "Fantasy of a Magnificent Wall Monument." It's so architectural but somehow dreamlike. Editor: Indeed. Giovanni Battista Piranesi produced this drawing, a composite of pen and colored pencil, sometime between 1764 and 1766, and I think its Neoclassical style exemplifies the period’s interest in form. Curator: Neoclassical? To me it’s more like the "ghosts" of neoclassicism. The sepia tone, the delicate linework, there’s a fragility to this imagined monument. It feels haunted, almost like something from a decaying civilization. Editor: The choice of materials emphasizes the social context and the economics of production that determined how architecture becomes an exercise. The contrast in values are achieved using layered processes: light washes indicate distant background spaces. Heavy lines with bold outlines bring certain objects forward to produce relief effects. It mimics sculptural processes in the choice of media. Curator: That's an interesting perspective! I get caught up in the theatricality of the piece, the way figures emerge and fade. Like the parade of figures atop the central facade, linking hands to create a harmonious flow. Then the grimacing gargoyles at the bottom. They're like emblems of another darker history, forever sealed away within the foundation of time itself. Editor: Piranesi certainly blurs distinctions. While these pieces are celebrated within high art contexts, the labor and material inputs deserve just as much attention. The layered technique invites one to ponder at the process in which material means allow forms of expressions. It also challenges conventional material hierarchies associated with drawing. Curator: I feel Piranesi's pulling from so many directions, it speaks to the fragmentation of memory and history. There is something inherently melancholic. Editor: I would agree there, these fantastic wall structures are never really finished and instead remain as fragments open to reinterpretations. Curator: It leaves a lasting impression, and offers us so much to explore from process to context and the symbolic undertones as we engage further with it. Editor: A worthy exploration of materials and concept of construction and display!