Venetian school, 19th century, View of Piazza San Marco – View of the Basin of San Marco

Venetian School, 19th Century View of Piazza San Marco – View of the Basin of San Marco (2) Gouache on paper, 18 x 24.5 cm Framed, 27.5 x 36 cm While Vedutismo reached its peak in the eighteenth century with such masters as Canaletto, Bellotto, and Guardi, the nineteenth century saw the continued influence and evolution of this pictorial genre in Venice. The representation of iconic views and famous monuments remained a popular subject among artists, fueling the fascination for the city among collectors and travelers. The evocative and melancholic atmosphere typical of the lagoon intensified in the nineteenth century, influenced by the artistic ideals of the Romantic movement: the nineteenth-century vedutisti, in fact, emphasized the emotional and poetic aspect of the city, capturing the elusive atmospheric effects and the radiant plays of light at dawn or the twilight of sunset. The use of new painting techniques, such as watercolor, gouache, and spot painting, made it possible to translate the visual impressions and atmosphere of the lagoon city with immediacy. The two views under consideration, a pair of gouaches on paper depicting Piazza San Marco and the Basin of San Marco respectively, can be traced back to the Venetian school of the 19th century, most likely to an artist who looked to the great 19th-century Venetian vedutisti: Vincenzo Chilone (Venice, 1758 – 1839), who trained from the age of twenty at the workshop of Francesco Battaglioli, famous for his topographical precision and lively depiction of daily life in Venice; Carlo Grubacs (Venice 1802 – 1878), who attended the School of Fine Arts in Venice under the guidance of Teodoro Matteini, participating in numerous exhibitions. An epigonist of the nineteenth-century Venetian Vedutismo, he created compositions with soft colors in the skies and backgrounds, always maintaining the use of rigidly perspective shots similar to theatrical wings; Luigi Querena (Venice, 1824 – 1887), whose paintings, able to capture the beauty of the Italian landscape in an accurate and evocative way, had a high degree of popularity for their high historical value: in fact, they documented the appearance of Italy before the country was unified. Even today, the nineteenth-century Venetian views are appreciated for their artistic and historical value. Preserved in museums and private collections, they offer a valuable testimony of the city of Venice in the nineteenth century, capturing the atmosphere, light, and urban changes of that period. The nineteenth-century Vedutismo has also contributed to consolidating the image of Venice as a romantic and evocative city. Its views have inspired writers, musicians and artists of later eras, fueling the enduring charm of this unique city in the world.