Calabria in the Engravings of the Voyage pittoresque. The Construction of an Image, the Destruction of an Image

Abstract

The ideal image of Calabria that the Saint-Non expedition hoped to find was that handed down by the classics, with archaeological remains capable of reconnecting myth to reality. On arriving in the various locations, however, these expectations found a very different situation, and the drawings had no choice but to adapt to it. Yet, unexpectedly, it was precisely from the loss of the ancient image that the new one emerged. This was composed of wild lands and inhabited centers, picturesquely perched on the cliffs or on the inland rocks. It was this new Calabria that was presented to Europe, through an original iconography, which owed nothing to the designers of the past. A part of the image codified in the Voyage was maintained until relatively recently: urban transformations did not - or only partially - affect historic centers, thus maintaining their recognizability. On the contrary, another more substantial part was abruptly annulled by natural events, such as the earthquake of 1783, and more often by interventions wanted and imposed by man, with irreversible alterations of cities and territories.

Keywords

• Calabria
• incisioni, spedizione Saint-Non