Francesco Guardi

FRANCESCO GUARDI (1712 – 1793)

Guardi lived in Venice for most of his life. His painterly style is characterized by a hurried, vigorous technique, which at the time did nothing to further his success. The brother-in-law of Gian Battista Tiepolo, he took up veduta painting late in life after abandoning his previous activity as a religious painter and copier. Unlike the lively, colourful interpretations of Canaletto over the period of the decline of La Serenissima Guardi’s veduta paintings are imbued with powerful, poetical overtones.

THE DOGE ON THE BUCENTAUR AT SAN NICOLO’

Oil painting, part of a series of veduta paintings by Guardi documenting the festivals and regattas held in honour of Venice’s most illustrious personages. The heavy emphasis on perspective and use of colour shades in this veduta painting commemorating the event reproduce the mood to perfection.