Capriccio with St. Paul's and Old London Bridge

A pupil of Giovanni Paolo Panini in Rome, Joli was active primarily as a painter of theater sets in Dresden, Madrid, London, Naples, and especially Venice, where he was influenced by Canaletto. From 1744 to 1748 he worked in London at the King’s Theatre, Haymarket. He also produced topographical paintings popular among English collectors. This work combines those two modes: the imaginary foreground operates like a stage set inspired by antiquity, while the background is a contemporary view of the river Thames with Saint Paul’s Cathedral, the Tower of London, and Old London Bridge.