Architectural Capriccio with a Monumental Arch 1705 - 1766

Jean Nicolas Servandoni made this architectural capriccio with graphite, pen and brown ink, and watercolor on off-white laid paper. Servandoni was an architect and stage designer, and in this work, he blends his architectural knowledge with theatrical flair to create an imaginary landscape of Roman ruins. The image offers a stage for the theatre of history itself. Looking at the painting, we are reminded of the power of art to evoke a sense of the past. But it is a selective past, one of monuments not people. In eighteenth-century France, such images reflected a fascination with the grandeur of antiquity and the use of classical forms in architecture. It’s interesting to think about the institutional impact, with academies shaping artistic tastes, with classical imagery used to affirm cultural values. As historians, we can delve deeper by exploring the artist’s biography, studying architectural treatises of the period, and examining the patronage networks that supported such artistic endeavors. The meaning of art is not fixed, but changes as it encounters different audiences across time.