Giovanni Battista Piranesi - Impossible and imaginary structures being studied by architects

Giovanni Battista Piranesi, 1720-1778, was an Italian whose engravings and etchings of Rome and imaginary structures are being studied now by universities. However in an exhibition of his work in the Carnegy Museum of Art, the public was invited to use a magnifying glasses to see the details. It sounds contradictory but still at the same exhibition photographies of Pittsburgh were displayed:

" These dramatic photographs of the Allegheny County Court House bare a striking resemblance to some of Piranesi’s imagined architecture. The photographs, by Clyde Hare, show just how relevant these ancient etchings are." “Despite being an old master, Piranesi’s fantasy environments will likely resonate with today’s audience,” says Amanda Zehnder, assistant curator of fine arts and organizer of Giovanni Battista Piranesi. “Contemporary imaginary virtual reality, aesthetics of electronically or digitally constructed experiential and social environments, and even the aesthetics of horror, recall Piranesi’s work."

The creator of imaginary never-ending staircases and chains still influences artists, architects, psychologists and other fields of knowledge. I believe you can understand now what is the meaning of "piranesian" at the post below. Images: Two of the fifteen Carceri's (Prisons) series Piranesi published. You can see them all here. It is very interesting to see Piranesi this way because he was considered to influence Surrealism. I never thought it was very fair. Not everything that deals with imagination is so detached from reality and has to be related to surrealism. "The dreams of the reason produces monsters." Goya wrote once which will be the next post.