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This is a story woven across Venice, Constantinople and later on Istanbul. It talks about their reciprocal love for gems, enamels and gold. An entangled, at times legendary story between two [...]

Antonio Canova’s Orpheus and Eurydice at the Correr Museum in Venice Antonio Canova started his career as a sculptor thanks to senator Giovanni Falier. In 1775 at the age of 18 his Orpheus [...]

Monsters. No romance. No glorification. Monstrous creatures often appear in the paintings of some Venetian collections. In these days of fear, a new light is cast over these depictions as if, [...]

Reaching success in Tintoretto’s life Tintoretto reached fame and success with his art in Venice at the age of thirty (see my previous post about it). His provoking and shocking “Miracle of [...]

Tintoretto was around thirty years old in 1548 when he painted The Miracle of the Slave for the Brotherhood of St. Mark in Venice, the revolutionary manifesto of his art. Two exhibitions [...]

David Dalla Venezia and his atelier in Venice It was some rainy afternoon in November a few years ago when David Dalla Venezia showed his atelier in Venice to my small group of teen-agers. I [...]

Meeting with Leonardo D’Este in Venice The first time I met with Leonardo D’Este, he was not there, but there were his paintings and they deeply struck my attention. His intense portraits [...]

One needs to plunder art to found an empire! When conquering a country, you cannot be happy just to get their land, their wealth or the lives of its inhabitants. It must affect history, which [...]

When Venetians loved gold more than Midas did St Mark’s square and its gilded monuments Have a look at the paintings in the Accademia Gallery by Gentile Bellini. You will discover gold leaf [...]

My last post on accessible Venice tours in a wheelchair attracted some interest! So here are some other insights. I hope it will help enjoy our city! Use boats in Venice when you visit in a [...]