Claude, 'A View in Rome', 1632

This painting combines an accurate view of Rome, on the left, with an imaginary ruin, on the right. The distant view is of the sixteenth-century church of Santa Trinità de' Monti, recognisable by its two clock towers. This is where Claude would be buried. Beside this is the convent of the Sacro Cuore. These buildings are now at the top of the Spanish Steps, which were built during the eighteenth century. Further to the right is the Palazzo Zuccari and on the horizon in the centre is the Quirinal Palace, the Pope’s summer residence. The viewpoint may be from the top of Claude’s house in Rome.

On the right is an entrance to a temple and a statue of Apollo, god of music, holding a lyre. The young man in the foreground may be giving alms in the form of coins to the peasant woman as a religious act of virtue. Or he could be paying for sex with the two young girls behind her, one of whom kneels with her hands crossed while the other reaches out to embrace a male companion. If this is a scene of prostitution, placing it in the shadow of a ruined pagan temple may have been intended as a deliberate symbolic contrast with the church bathed in sunlight on the opposite side of the picture. These kinds of figures do not appear in other works by Claude, and some commentators in the past have suggested that they may have been painted by another artist. However, the painted-out changes, or pentimenti, made to the position of the figures and background details suggest this was the work of one artist – most likely Claude.

Signed and dated 1632, this is one of Claude’s early works. The buildings are depicted in a sketchy style and without an understanding of how to combine intricate detail and perspective. The contrast between light and shade in the composition lacks subtlety: the background is shown in blazing sunlight whereas the foreground is almost in darkness. During this period, Claude was developing his own style and was influenced by other artists, such as Willem van Nieulandt II (1584–1635) who combines the real and imaginary in his landscapes; Agostino Tassi (1578–1644), known for his warm colouring, and Cornelis van Poelenburgh (1594–1667) for his light effects.