Giovanni Antonio Canal, or Canaletto as he is better known, is a Venetian artist celebrated for his landscape paintings and topographical style. He was born in 1697 to a family of artists and first apprenticed with his father as a theatrical scene painter. Inspired by the Roman view painter Giovanni Pannini, Canaletto shifted his focus to painting cityscapes and the everyday life of the Venetian people — two hallmarks of Canaletto paintings that are best represented in works like The Stonemason's Yard.
Though he painted until his death in 1768, earlier Canaletto paintings and prints remain his most coveted as they best evince the style that made him famous. Despite a slight wane in popularity, Canaletto remained a distinguished artist all his life and was elected to the Venetian Academy in 1763. Invaluable is proud to offer select pieces of Canaletto art, as well as other collectible lithograph prints for sale online.