Garden Capriccio with Antique Ruins
c. 1788
Medium
watercolor and black ink over graphite on laid paper
Dimensions
overall: 21.1 x 17.5 cm (8 5/16 x 6 7/8 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Ivan E. and Winifred Phillips in memory of Neil Phillips
Accession Number
2001.83.1
Art Historical Context
**Garden Capriccio with Antique Ruins** by Jean-Henri-Alexandre Pernet, created around 1788, invites viewers into an enchanting imaginary landscape. This delicate drawing depicts a lush garden scene interwoven with fantastical antique ruins—crumbling arches, columns, and statues evoking the grandeur of ancient Rome. Pernet, a French architect and artist active in the late 18th century, specialized in such *capriccios*: whimsical compositions blending real architectural elements with invented vistas, a popular genre that captured the era's fascination with picturesque decay and classical antiqu...