Bernardo Bellotto was an Italian painter best known for his highly detailed vedute (cityscapes). He was the nephew and pupil of the famous Venetian artist Canaletto, and for much of his life he was even known as “Canaletto” in northern Europe. While he learned his technique from his uncle, Bellotto developed a distinctive style with a cooler, silvery light, stronger contrasts, and an almost architectural precision.

Bellotto worked as a court painter in several major European centers, including Venice, Dresden, Vienna, Munich, and Warsaw. His panoramic views of Dresden and Warsaw are especially important, not only artistically but also historically: after World War II, Bellotto’s Warsaw paintings were used as key visual documents in the city’s reconstruction.

Most Popular / Famous Painting

One of Bellotto’s most celebrated works is Dresden from the Right Bank of the Elbe (also known as part of his Dresden cityscape series). This monumental view captures the skyline of Dresden with extraordinary accuracy and atmosphere. It is considered a masterpiece of 18th-century urban landscape painting and is among his most widely reproduced and studied works.