(Venice 1863–1953)
Venice, a View of San Giorgio from the Piazzetta di San Marco, signed C. Vianello, oil on canvas, 171 x 171 cm, framed

Provenance:
Private Collection, Italy.

Exhibited:
Venice, Palazzo Querini, Venezia in Chiaro - Dialoghi e silenzi nella pittura tra Ottocento e Novecento, 1 November 2018 - 13 January 2019, no. 24.

Catalogued and Illustrated in:
Exhibition catalogue, Venezia in Chiaro - Dialoghi e silenzi nella pittura tra Ottocento e Novecento, pp. 91 and 207, no. 24.

Cesare Vianello attended the Venetian Academy of Fine Arts, where his lively genre scenes were noted, in which the taste for anecdote is accompanied by a realistic lagoon setting, often in 18th-century costume after the style of Favretto. His choice of subjects was similar to Stefano Novo and Luigi Pastega, although he broke away from them for a more personal and refined style, marked by vivid colours and effective chiaroscuro relationships. His debut took place at the Esposizione Nazionale Artistica in 1887, and he then exhibited at several of the Venice Biennials from 1897 to 1924. He participated in foreign exhibitions including the London Italian Exhibition, Earl’s Court 1888 with “Outside St. Mark’s”, a scene set outside St. Mark’s Basilica, and in Edinburgh (Royal Scottish Academy, 1891), with “A declaration of love”.

Against a soft, rosy sunset light, 18th-century Venetian gentlemen and ladies enjoy an elegant promenade from the Royal Gardens to Piazzetta San Marco along the quay. The Piazzetta di San Marco shows the church of San Giorgio at the end. Alongside the strolling couples in love, others are about to watch the sumptuous procession of gondolas with the Bucintoro in the basin at the front.