Lagune bij Venetië
1740 - 1800
Medium
oil on canvas
Dimensions
5.6; 2.8; 44.6; 55.2
About this artwork
Gift of Mr and Mrs Kessler-Hülsmann, Kapelle op den Bosch
Art Historical Context
Francesco Guardi’s *Lagune bij Venetië* captures the shimmering expanse of the Venetian lagoon with delicate touch for which the artist became renowned. Active in the eighteenth century, Guardi belonged to the final generation of Venetian view painters. Unlike his more precise contemporary Canaletto, he favored a softer, almost atmospheric approach, using rapid brushstrokes to suggest light, water, and distance rather than architectural detail. The modest size of the canvas—roughly 45 by 55 centimeters—invites an intimate encounter, as though the viewer is quietly observing the scene from a pa...
About the Artist
Francesco Guardi · 1712–1793
Francesco Lazzaro Guardi (1712–1793) was born into a noble family of painters from Trentino who had settled in Venice. His father, Domenico Guardi, a minor painter trained in Vienna, died in 1716, leaving young Francesco to inherit the family workshop alongside his brothers Giovanni Antonio (Gian Antonio) and Niccolò, both artists, and sister Maria Cecilia, who married the renowned Giovanni Battis...