Venice: The Grand Canal from the Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi towards San Geremia
Canaletto·1727
Historical Context
Venice: The Grand Canal from the Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi towards San Geremia, painted around 1727 and now in the Royal Collection, depicts the upper reaches of the Grand Canal near the magnificent Renaissance palazzo where Richard Wagner would later die in 1883. The Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi, designed by Mauro Codussi in the late fifteenth century, was one of the finest Renaissance palaces in Venice. Canaletto's early rendering captures the architectural elegance of this stretch of the canal with the warm, atmospheric quality of his earliest mature period. The painting documents the Grand Canal before centuries of renovation and modification altered some of the facades Canaletto so precisely recorded.
Technical Analysis
The palazzo's elegant Renaissance facade dominates the near distance, with the canal perspective receding toward the Cannaregio junction. The early warm palette enhances the architectural detail of Codussi's classical design.
Look Closer
- ◆Notice the elegant Renaissance facade of the Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi dominating the near distance — the palazzo where Richard Wagner would later die in 1883.
- ◆Look at the early warm palette enhancing Codussi's classical design as the canal perspective recedes toward the Cannaregio junction.
- ◆Observe the upper reaches of the Grand Canal near one of Venice's grandest Renaissance palaces in this 1727 Royal Collection view.
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