Georges-François Blondel

1730 - 1791 French

Classical ruins in mezzotint engravings

Georges-François Blondel was the son of a leading French architectural theorist Jacques-François Blondel. After training in Paris, he worked first in Rome and then in London, where he learned the technique of mezzotint engraving. His taste for monumental classical structures and his tendency to make even modern subjects resemble ancient ruins suggest his admiration for Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720-1788).