A sedan chair, a coach, a commode, a side table and two clocks (Deux ch. à porteurs v. de côté, une commode, une console, deux pedules, un meuble indét), from Diverse Maniere d'adornare i cammini ed ogni altra parte degli edifizi...(Different Ways of ornamenting chimneypieces and all other parts of houses)

The ticket

A sedan chair, a coach, a commode, a side table and two clocks (Deux ch. à porteurs v. de côté, une commode, une console, deux pedules, un meuble indét), from Diverse Maniere d'adornare i cammini ed ogni altra parte degli edifizi...(Different Ways of ornamenting chimneypieces and all other parts of houses) is a print by Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian, Mogliano Veneto 1720–1778 Rome), dated ca. 1769. Etching. Size on the museum record: Sheet: 21 5/8 x 15 3/16 in. (55 x 38.5 cm) Plate: 15 1/4 x 9 13/16 in. (38.8 x 25 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art holds it in its Drawings and Prints collection — The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1973.

The Met catalogs A sedan chair, a coach, a commode, a side table and two clocks (Deux ch. à porteurs v. de côté, une commode, une console, deux pedules, un meuble indét), from Diverse Maniere d'adornare i cammini ed ogni altra parte degli edifizi...(Different Ways of ornamenting chimneypieces and all other parts of houses) as an etching by Giovanni Battista Piranesi. The museum dates it ca. 1769; it sits in the Drawings and Prints department as accession 1973.509.1. A still life rewards close looking: the objects are arranged on purpose, and a bit of light makes the surfaces read. The Met's scan measures 2,447 × 3,648 pixels, which prints about 8.2 × 12.2 in at 300 dpi and 16.3 × 24.3 in at a still-comfortable 150 dpi. Its tall proportions suit a hallway, a narrow wall or the gap beside a door, and the set builder shows how much each standard frame would crop. Its muted earth tones are forgiving: natural wood softens the palette, walnut deepens it and black frames it like a gallery. Line work lives on contrast. Print it on smooth bright paper and give it a wider frame or mat so the fine marks are not swallowed. Light it from above with a soft warm bulb, hang the centre of the picture near 57 inches, and it will read as intended instead of as decoration.

The Met released its scan under CC0, which means no permission, no fee and no credit line required. That file is 2,447 × 3,648 pixels — 8.9 megapixels — good for a gallery-sharp print up to 8.2 × 12.2 in. The print itself measures about 15.2 × 21.7 in, so a true life-size print runs below 300 dpi — still sharp at normal viewing distance.Line work lives or dies on contrast. Print it on a smooth, bright paper and give it a wide mat: small graphic work drowns in a thin frame and a big empty border makes it look like it came out of a print room drawer.

On the receipt

Artist

Giovanni Battista Piranesi

Date

ca. 1769

Medium

Etching

Size

Sheet: 21 5/8 x 15 3/16 in. (55 x 38.5 cm) Plate: 15 1/4 x 9 13/16 in. (38.8 x 25 cm)

Museum

The Met · Drawings and Prints

Accession

1973.509.1

License

Public domain · CC0 1.0

Source

Museum record ↗