Art UK has updated its cookies policy. By using this website you are agreeing to the use of cookies. To find out more read our updated Use of Cookies policy and our updated Privacy policy.

Venice: Piazza San Marco and the Colonnade of the Procuratie Nuove

Image credit: The National Gallery, London

How you can use this image

This image can be used for non-commercial research or private study purposes, and other UK exceptions to copyright permitted to users based in the United Kingdom under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised. Any other type of use will need to be cleared with the rights holder(s).

Review the copyright credit lines that are located underneath the image, as these indicate who manages the copyright (©) within the artwork, and the photographic rights within the image.

The collection that owns the artwork may have more information on their own website about permitted uses and image licensing options.

Review our guidance pages which explain how you can reuse images, how to credit an image and how to find images in the public domain or with a Creative Commons licence available.

Buy a print or image licence

You can purchase this reproduction

If you have any products in your basket we recommend that you complete your purchase from Art UK before you leave our site to avoid losing your purchases.

Notes

Add or edit a note on this artwork that only you can see. You can find notes again by going to the ‘Notes’ section of your account.

We see the Piazza San Marco from just inside the colonnade of the Procuratie Nuove, which housed the procurators (or caretakers) of San Marco. Although painting one of Venice’s most famous sights, Canaletto took liberties with the architecture to create a dramatic composition, enlarging the size of the archway and removing one of the pillars so we can see both the piazza and down the arcade.

In front of us, two men lean back against an archway, a dog sitting faithfully at their feet. Another, wearing a vivid green cloak and holding a cup and saucer, seems to be listening in on their conversation. Behind him is the famous coffee house, Caffè Florian – probably where his beverage comes from.

Canaletto experimented with a form of visual trickery, arranging the vertical lines of particular architectural features – the pillar of the arch and the column on its outer edge with the campanile (bell tower) beyond, for example – to create an unusual and interesting composition.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

Venice: Piazza San Marco and the Colonnade of the Procuratie Nuove

Date

about 1756

Medium

Oil on canvas

Measurements

H 46.4 x W 38.1 cm

Accession number

NG2516

Acquisition method

Salting Bequest, 1910

Work type

Painting

Tags

See a tag that’s incorrect or offensive? Challenge it and notify Art UK.

Help improve Art UK. Tag artworks and verify existing tags by joining the Tagger community.

Normally on display at

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

This venue is open to the public. Not all artworks are on display. If you want to see a particular artwork, please contact the venue.
View venue