Carceri d'invenzione
Carceri d'invenzione is a set of etched imaginary prison views by Giovanni Battista Piranesi, published in Rome around 1761 and aimed at connoisseurs of architecture and antiquarian prints. The plates show vast vaulted halls, ramps, and staircases crowded with chains, beams, and cranes, all drawn in dense, dark crosshatched line. A designer could take from them the stark drama of layered perspective, heavy shadow, and ruinous monumental space.
