European school, 19th century

European school, 19th century
"View of St. Peter's Square, Rome."
Watercolor on paper.
The paper has slight rust stains.
Measurements: 35,5 x 52,5 cm; 50 x 67 x 6 cm (frame).

This delicate watercolor represents a frontal view of St. Peter's Square in Rome. The composition is arranged axially, with the Egyptian obelisk in the center, flanked by the two monumental fountains by Carlo Maderno and Gian Lorenzo Bernini, whose fountains animate the scene with a subtle play of movement and light. In the background, St. Peter's Basilica imposes itself in all its majesty, treated with a detail that evidences a solid mastery of architectural drawing. The artist, anonymous but certainly linked to the tradition of the vedutisti or view painters, shows a clear intention of balance between documentary precision and a poetic atmosphere. Bernini's colonnato, extending in its two symmetrical arms, frames the sacred space and was conceived to confer a sense of welcome to the pilgrim. At different levels, a scene of daily life unfolds: strollers, carriages, mothers with children, figures reduced to a minimum in the distance, described as points of color that suggest movement and multiplicity without breaking the formal unity of the composition. The sober chromatic range is dominated by grayish blue tones, warm browns and slight touches of red and white, with which the artist suggests atmospheric depth and models volumes without losing lightness. Overall, the work is part of a tradition of romantic veduta, where rigorous drawing coexists with a subjective gaze that celebrates the grandeur of the past and the beauty of the urban present. A refined piece, as much for its technique as for its topographical and artistic sensibility.