Francesco Foschi was born in Ancona in 1710 into a wealthy family. Some of his brothers were also painters, of which the best known was Carlo Foschi who specialized in marine views.

Francesco began his training in the studio of Francesco Mancini in Fano. At the outset of his career he enjoyed the support of Count Raimondo Bonaccorsi, whom Foschi helped to assemble a magnificent art collection that included twelve episodes from Ovid’s Metamorphoses by Foschi himself. In 1729 the artist’s family moved to Rome where the 19-year-old Francesco paid careful attention to the urban view paintings of Panini and Vanvitelli. The influence of the latter’s panoramic scenes is readily evident in ...