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Francesco Guardi

Scuola di San Marco with Loggia Erected for Benediction of Pope Pius VI May 19, 1782, Campo San Zanipolo, ca. 1782

Now On View

Description

Maker

  • Francesco Guardi, 1712-1793, Italian

Title

Scuola di San Marco with Loggia Erected for Benediction of Pope Pius VI May 19, 1782, Campo San Zanipolo

Year

ca. 1782

Medium

Oil on canvas

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • oil paint

Supports

  • canvas

Dimensions

38.7 x 32.4 cm (15 1/4 x 12 3/4 inches)

Place

Italy

Type

  • Paintings

Credit

Gift of Mrs. Murray S. Danforth

Object Number

53.115

About

In 1782 Venice celebrated the first visit of a pope in six centuries by planning a series of ecclesiastical ceremonies. The culminating event, a papal benediction, took place on elaborate terraces (loggia) constructed for this purpose on the Scuola di San Marco, one of Venice’s most important guild halls. To commemorate the visit, the artist Francesco Guardi was commissioned to record the major activities in a series of large paintings. He also created smaller versions, including this one, which shows the site of the benediction with only a suggestion of the many participants who had filled the piazza. Records show that Guardi arrived after the event, but he recreated the scene by preparing numerous detailed drawings and most likely sought eyewitness accounts. He faithfully represented the double staircase leading up to the loggia and the elaborate sculptural decoration of the guild hall’s façade. The scene is animated by the fluidity of his brushwork and by the artist’s attention to atmosphere, shadow, and reflected light.

Italy
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Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Intermission

December 16, 2016 - July 2, 2017

From the Reserve I

April 9 - August 3, 1994

Italian Painting

April 6 - August 25, 1990

European Galleries

In 1782, Venice celebrated the first visit of a pope in six centuries. The occasion was marked with a series of ecclesiastical ceremonies, ending on a stage constructed on the Scuola di San Marco, one of Venice’s most important guild halls.

Artist Francesco Guardi recorded these events in a series of large paintings, but he also produced smaller views—including this one—for sale to collectors. Although he arrived in Venice after the pope’s benediction ceremony, he recreated the scene through detailed drawings. These drawings aided him in representing the double staircase leading to the stage and the details of the building’s façade.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Scuola di San Marco with Loggia Erected for Benediction of Pope Pius VI May 19, 1782, Campo San Zanipolo with the accession number of 53.115. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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