# View of Rome

**Pierre Henri de Valenciennes** (French, 1750–1819)  
c. 1782–84  
oil on paper, mounted on board  
Framed: 30 x 49 x 4.5 cm (11 13/16 x 19 5/16 x 1 3/4 in.); Unframed: 19.5 x 39 cm (7 11/16 x 15 3/8 in.)

Courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art, 1970.55. [The museum's record](https://clevelandart.org/art/1970.55).

## About this work

This oil sketch showing St. Peter's Basilica in the distance was painted during the artist's stay in Rome, 1777–85. Its spontaneity and freshness is typical of the artist's outdoor paintings, in which he sought to capture the light and atmosphere of Rome.

_Text from the Cleveland Museum of Art._

Pierre Henri de Valenciennes painted this in about 1782–84, aged about 32. It is now at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

### How it was made

- **Oil paint.** Pigment ground in a drying oil, usually linseed. It dries slowly, so painters could blend on the canvas, build up thin translucent glazes, and rework a picture over weeks. Canvas replaced wooden panels in the 1500s because it is lighter and can be rolled.

### [Pierre Henri de Valenciennes](https://www.ochreeditions.com/artists/pierre-henri-de-valenciennes)

French, 1750–1819

Valenciennes was the leading theorist of French historical landscape. During years in Italy in the late 1770s and 1780s he made small oil sketches outdoors, recording the same rooftops or clouds at different times of day, studies he kept in his studio but which are now his most admired work. His treatise of 1800 urged students to paint from nature, and his teaching helped bring about the Prix de Rome for historical landscape, created in 1817.

_Written by Ochre Editions._

## Facts

- Type: Painting
- Culture: France
- The artist was about 32
- Real size: about 7½ × 15 in (20 × 39 cm). The 12 × 16 in print is close to life size.
- Century: 18th century
- Colour: brown
- Rights: public domain (CC0 1.0); free to use for any purpose.

## Get it

- Free download, full resolution: https://img.ochreeditions.com/m/676.jpg?dl=1
- Image: https://img.ochreeditions.com/a/676/1920.jpg
- Giclée reproduction on Hahnemühle Photo Rag: 8 × 10 in $28; 11 × 14 in $38; 12 × 16 in $42; 16 × 20 in $56; 18 × 24 in $68
- Framed reproduction: 8 × 10 in $78; 11 × 14 in $98; 12 × 16 in $108; 16 × 20 in $138; 18 × 24 in $164
- Canvas reproduction: 8 × 10 in $58; 11 × 14 in $72; 12 × 16 in $79; 16 × 20 in $98
- Print-ready file: 8 × 10 in $2; 11 × 14 in $2; 12 × 16 in $3; 16 × 20 in $3; 18 × 24 in $3

Sizes stop where the museum's file would print below 150 pixels per inch. Everything sold is a reproduction, made to order. [Order a print](https://www.ochreeditions.com/art/view-of-rome-cma-145309).