or Giambattista Piranesi
born Oct. 4, 1720, Mestre, near Venice
died Nov. 9, 1778, Rome, Papal States
Italian draftsman, printmaker, architect, and art theorist.
He went to Rome at 20 as a draftsman for the Venetian ambassador. After settling there in 1747, he developed a highly original etching technique that produced rich textures and bold contrasts of light and shadow. His many prints of Classical and post-Classical Roman structures contributed to the growth of Classical archaeology and the Neoclassical art movement. He is best known today for his extraordinary series of imaginary prisons ( Carceri d'invenzione , 1745). His prints are among the most impressive architectural representations in Western art.