This volume is dedicated to Bernardo Bellotto (1722-1780), grandson of Canaletto and protagonist of 18th century landscape painting. It explores the less investigated period of the Venetian painter's life, the one preceding the successful career undertaken in the European courts starting from 1747, the year in which he moved to Dresden. In the age of the Grand Tour, the eighteen year old Bellotto visited the great Italian art cities, leaving us with exceptional views that already reveal the peculiar characteristics and modernity of his painting. This book contains precious and rare works, among which are the ones related to the itinerary followed by the painter in Tuscany in 1740, and the series dedicated to the city of Lucca, coming from the British Library in London and the York Art Gallery, along with the views of Florence and Livorno. Edited by Bozena Anna Kowalczyk, one of the greatest scholars of Canaletto and Bellotto, the volume is divided into sections introduced by texts resulting from new and unpublished historical and archival research, and is completed by a documentary appendix, bibliography and indicies. Text in English and Italian.

This book reveals the extraordinary artistic relationship between Canaletto (Venice 1697-1768) and Bernardo Bellotto (Venice 1722-Warsaw 1780). This book reveals the extraordinary artistic relationship between Canaletto (Venice 1697-1768) and Bernardo Bellotto (Venice 1722-Warsaw 1780): from the speed with which the exceptional young nephew learned from the teachings of his uncle - leading him to become his alter ego in works for English collectors - to the end of their direct relationship, with Canaletto based in London and Bellotto in European capitals such as Dresden and Warsaw. Then this book highlights the interests developed by Bellotto on his travels: his rigorous perspectives and precise rendering of architecture, but also of landscapes and portraiture, modern themes that differentiate him significantly from his uncle, who clung to the more splendid and idealised eighteenth century. The recent rediscovery of the inventory of goods from Bellotto's house in Dresden - included here - finally offers a key to understanding the culture and personality of an artist who was one of the eighteenth century's most restless and free.