View of Santi Giovanni e Paolo (San Zanipolo), Venice
Original title: View of Santi Giovanni e Paolo (San Zanipolo), Venice
kurzbeschreibung
A gondola carrying several passengers opens this 1763 etching by Giovanni Battista Brustolon, gliding along a canal that leads the eye toward the Venetian church of Santi Giovanni e Paolo. The sheet belongs to a series of vedute, and Brustolon produced this view as an etching on paper.
Description
People sit in the gondola as it slips across the water in the foreground. Behind them rises Santi Giovanni e Paolo, its large round-arched window and several smaller openings clearly defined. To the left stands a building with a curving roof; to the right, a wellhead topped by a figure. The eye travels on past a street and further houses, all beneath a clouded sky. Light falls evenly, and the whole remains monochrome in shades of grey.
Context
Santi Giovanni e Paolo, a major Gothic structure of the thirteenth century, anchors this view. Brustolon made the print in 1763 after drawings by Canaletto, as part of a series of Venetian scenes. In the eighteenth century Venice was a hub of veduta engraving, and such prints were much sought after by Grand Tour travellers.
Impact
Precise linework gives the view a documentary cast. The urban space opens out before the viewer, calm and clear. Even lighting and monochrome tonality push the architectural structure to the fore.
Technique
The drawing was engraved into a metal plate and bitten with acid, then printed on paper. The plate measures 32.8 × 46.6 cm. Fine lines and hatching build the grey tones and the details of the buildings.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)