Turin, the Old Bridge over the Po from the North-East

Bellotto travelled to Turin in 1745 while building his independent reputation after years in his uncle Canaletto's workshop. The commission to paint Turin for the Savoy court marked a significant step in his career, and the resulting views rank among the finest topographical documents of Piedmontese Baroque urbanism. This view of the old Ponte di Po from the north-east shows the bridge that connected Turin's historic centre with the residential and military districts on the river's eastern bank. The Po at Turin has a different character from the canals of Venice — broader, faster, less reflective — and Bellotto adapts his technique accordingly, rendering the river's current rather than its mirror surface. The Galleria Sabauda in Turin holds this painting as part of its collection of Savoy court commissions. The bridge depicted was subsequently demolished and rebuilt, making Bellotto's record the primary visual document of its original form — a pattern that repeats throughout his career, as urban modernisation erased the structures he had carefully preserved in paint.

Bellotto positions the viewer slightly above river level on the northern bank, creating a three-quarter perspective that shows both the bridge's full length and its relationship to the Turin skyline behind. The river surface is rendered in dynamic horizontal strokes that suggest current rather than the still reflection typical of his Venetian works.