Capriccio with Ruins and Porta Portello in Padua 1760

Canaletto painted ‘Capriccio with Ruins and Porta Portello in Padua’ with oil on canvas sometime in the 18th century. Venice, during Canaletto’s time, was a hub of artistic innovation, but also a site of deep social stratification. His work often navigates this tension, idealizing the city while subtly acknowledging its complexities. Here, the figures populating the scene offer a glimpse into the social fabric of the time. We see merchants, soldiers, and what appears to be a mother and child, all coexisting within this imagined space. The juxtaposition of the working class against the backdrop of classical ruins prompts reflection on the relationship between labor, history, and social mobility. What did it mean to move through these spaces depending on who you were? Canaletto uses the ‘capriccio’ genre to blend fantasy with reality, inviting us to consider how the past and present intertwine in shaping our perceptions of place and identity. It invites us to reimagine these spaces, and to consider who gets to inscribe their stories onto the landscape.