The Dead Artists Gallery Presents “A Capriccio”

“A Capriccio.” The term Capriccio refers to landscape or architectural compositions that combine real elements, such as recognizable buildings or monuments, with elements of fantasy or imagination. Several Venetian artists, especially Giovanni Antonio Canaletto (1616-1768), Marco Ricci, and the Painter Antonio Visentini.(1688-1772) made many paintings and drawings of Capriccio subjects, and the genre became particularly associated with 18th century Venice. Capricci were popular among Grand Tourists , conjuring romantic images of Italy, especially the picturesque decay of classical ruins, and were prized as a mark of the artist’s imagination. Canaletto habitually moved and altered buildings in his ostensibly accurate views to obtain a better composition, and the Capriccio was a further extension of this creative interplay of reality and invention. Oil on canvas executed circa 1950 by Italian landscapist Sergio Ozzoni (1930-?). Obtaining his degree in fine arts from The Academy of Marseille, Ozzoni painted the Italian landscapes extensively using the 18th century French Barbizon style to create his own unique capriccio . Presented in original Italian carved and painted wood frame 30 x 35, $950.