Giambattista Brustolon

Late etchings with Joseph Wagner

Giambattista Brustolon (or Giovanni Battista Brostolon) (1726-96) was born and lived all his life in Venice.

Very little information is available about his life, we know he initially tried to do painting and fresco and, not being successful, moved his work interests to etching.

Brustolon learned his work as an etcher with Joseph Wagner after 1739.

Canaletto expressly made twelve drawings of traditional Venetian festivals - in pen, brown ink and gray watercolor - known as 'Solennità dogali' (Dogal Solemnities) and Giambattista Brustolon engraved in 1766, in etching and burin.

The 'Solennità dogali' images were later replicated in paintings by Francesco Guardi.

In 1791 the same etchings were replicated with French titles, as his 'privilegio' (copyright) in Venice had expired.

Brustolon's more known work can be considered the 'Prospectuum aedium, Viarumque insigniorum Urbis Venetiarum Nautico certamine, ac Nundinis adiectis Tomus primus ...' which was edited in Venice by Ludovico Furlanetto in 1763, and included 6 images from Canaletto, 3 from G.B. Moretti, and 3 without name.