Bernardo Bellotto

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Bellotto, Bernardo (b Venice, 30 Jan. 1721; d Warsaw, 17 Nov. 1780). Italian painter, draughtsman, and etcher, nephew, pupil, and assistant of Canaletto in Venice. He became a member of the Venetian painters' guild in 1738 and in the 1740s he travelled widely in Italy, painting views of Florence, Rome, and other cities. In 1747 he left Italy for good, spending the rest of his life working successfully at various European courts, notably Dresden (1747–58 and 1761–6) and Warsaw (where he lived from 1767 until his death). He called himself Canaletto, and this caused confusion (perhaps deliberate) between his work and his uncle's, particularly in views of Venice. Bellotto's early work is indeed sometimes difficult to tell apart from his uncle's, but his mature style is more individual, distinguished by an almost Dutch interest in massed clouds, cast shadows, and rich foliage. His colouring is also generally more sombre than Canaletto's, much of his work being characterized by a steely grey. The best collections of his work are in Dresden (Gemäldegalerie) and Warsaw (Nat. Mus.). In the rebuilding of Warsaw after the Second World War his pictures were used as guides, even in the reconstruction of architectural ornament.

Bellotto, Bernardo (1721–80). Italian painter, draughtsman, and etcher, nephew, pupil, and assistant of Canaletto in Venice. He became a member of the Venetian painters' guild in 1738 and in the 1740s he travelled widely in Italy, painting views of Florence, Rome, and other cities. In 1747 he left Italy for good, spending the rest of his life working successfully at various European courts, notably Dresden (1747–58 and 1761–6) and Warsaw (where he lived from 1767 until his death). He called himself Canaletto, and this caused confusion (perhaps deliberate) between his work and his uncle's, particularly in views of Venice. Bellotto's early work is indeed sometimes difficult to tell apart from his uncle's, but his mature style is more individual, distinguished by an almost Dutch interest in massed clouds, cast shadows, and rich foliage. His colouring is also generally more sombre than Canaletto's, much of his work being characterized by a steely grey. The best collections of his work are in Dresden (Gemäldegalerie) and Warsaw (Nat. Mus.). In the rebuilding of Warsaw after the Second World War his pictures were used as guides, even in the reconstruction of architectural ornament.

Bernardo Bellotto , 1720–80, Venetian architectural and landscape painter, also called Canaletto, after his uncle and teacher Canaletto . His paintings, at first resembling those of his master, are numerous and may be seen in most of the leading European museums. They usually depict scenes in the cities in which Bellotto resided. In 1747 he was appointed court painter at Dresden and in 1770 painter to Stanislaus II at Warsaw.

Bibliography: See S. Kozakiewicz, Bernardo Bellotto (tr., 2 vol. 1972).