Arnold Böcklin
Self-Portrait with Death Playing the Fiddle
From $100
This painting is sky blue, warm stone and gold, and a cheap copy blurs the quick brushwork. Our Guardi Architectural Caprice print was graded from a high-resolution master so every flick of sunlight stays bright.
Canvas, framed or paper
Stretched canvas. Printed on cotton canvas and stretched taut over a frame. The edges are mirror-wrapped, so the picture continues around the sides and none of it is lost to the fold.
Framed canvas. The same canvas, set in a black, white, natural wood or dark wood frame 0.83 in deep. The frame gives the work a finished edge and a little more presence on the wall.
Framed print. Printed on fine art matte paper and framed in solid pine, behind shatterproof plexiglass, in black, white, natural wood or dark wood. It arrives ready to hang. Framed sizes are measured on the outside of the frame.
Fine art print. Printed on 310gsm fine art matte paper, for framing your own way. It travels rolled and protected. From 18x24 inch.
Sizes
12x16 inch, 18x24 inch, 30x40 inch. Framed sizes are measured on the outside of the frame, so the visible painting is a little smaller.
On your wall
Its tall shape suits a study, a hallway or a living room wall. The blues, stones and golds look rich with cream, slate and walnut, and a gold or white frame suits it.
About the painting
An Architectural Caprice by Francesco Guardi
An imaginary view
A caprice is a made-up scene. Here tall buildings loom over tiny figures like a stage set, and the staircase fades into shadow so you cannot see where it meets the ground.
Palladio’s bridge
The domed building may come from Palladio’s design for the Rialto Bridge in Venice, which was never built. Guardi added the dome himself.
Sunlight in a few strokes
Guardi used sharp yellow and white flicks of paint for bright sun. George Salting bought this little picture, probably in 1885, and left it to the National Gallery in 1910.
Read the story
Tall buildings tower over tiny figures, like a stage set in a theatre. There's a domed temple on the left, great columns on the right, and a curving arcade in the distance. Down below, little people climb the sunlit steps.
This place doesn't exist. It's a capriccio, an imaginary view, and it was a speciality of the Venetian painter Francesco Guardi.
But some of it comes from real life. The domed building may be based on a design by the great architect Palladio for the Rialto Bridge in Venice. Palladio's bridge was never built. Guardi took the design, added a dome of his own, and set it here.
Look at how he paints the light. Sharp little flicks of yellow and white make the sun blaze on the stone and on the figures. And at the bottom of the stairs everything fades into shadow, so you can't quite see where the building meets the ground.
Guardi came from a family of painters. For years he worked with his older brother on religious paintings, and after his brother died in 1760 he concentrated on the views and fantasies of Venice that made him famous.
The painting is tiny, only about twenty-two centimetres tall. George Salting bought it, probably in 1885, and left it to the National Gallery in London in 1910.
An Architectural Caprice. Francesco Guardi, about 1770 to 1780.
How each piece is brought to life
Faithful to the original, and made to be felt on your wall.
Graded against the original
We compare every work with the original as we grade it, keeping the artist’s colours true while bringing back their depth and glow. Every mark stays the artist’s own.
Printed for you
Printed to order on cotton canvas or fine art paper, then framed if you chose a frame, in 1 to 3 business days.
On your wall
It arrives 5 to 12 business days later, tracked and free anywhere in the US. Framed pieces come ready to hang.
Questions
Is this the original painting?
No. The original hangs in a museum. What you receive is a fine art reproduction, remastered from the original and printed for you, with every mark where the artist left it.
Will the colour look flat?
This is where most reproductions disappoint, and it is where we spend the most time. Each work is graded side by side with the original: faithful to the artist’s colours, with the depth and warmth brought back, so it moves you on the wall the way it was meant to. Canvas reads a touch softer than a backlit screen, and every screen shows colour a little differently.
Will the edges be cropped?
Each size is a standard frame size, so we fit the painting by trimming a little from its edges. We never stretch or squash it, and we check every size by eye so no face, figure or signature is cut. On canvas the edges are mirror-wrapped, which keeps the whole picture on the front.
Which size is right for my wall?
Aim for about two-thirds the width of the furniture beneath it. Over a sofa or a sideboard, one of the two largest sizes will hold the wall. The size guide lists every size in inches and centimetres, with the kind of wall each one suits.
How long does it take?
Your piece is printed in 1–3 business days, then spends 5–12 business days in transit, tracked all the way. Delivery is free anywhere in the US. We are unable to deliver to PO boxes.
What if it arrives damaged?
Send us a photograph and we will remake it and send it again. There is nothing to return.
Can I return it?
Yes, within 30 days of delivery. Our returns policy has the details.
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Printed to order
Graded against the original, then printed for you on cotton canvas or fine art paper in 1–3 business days.
The whole painting
Every mark is the artist’s own, and canvas edges are mirror-wrapped so the whole picture stays on the front.
Free US shipping
On every order, tracked, 5–12 business days in transit.
30-day returns
Returns and exchanges within 30 days of delivery.
