Lot Essay
The present painting was executed in the summer of 1895, during Boudin's third and longest visit to Venice. Most of the views of Venice which he painted in this period are panoramic, incorporating the familiar landmarks of the city and the lagoon. However, Boudin also depicted smaller and less familiar canals, and even painted views of fishing boats very similar to those he would have depicted in northern France or in Holland.
In this scene, the artist has placed his easel on the northern bank of the Giudecca, an island south of the city across the Giudecca Canal. From there, one can see two of the most distinguished Palladian churches of the city, the church of the Zitelle (circa 1582) on the right and the church of San Giorgio Maggiore (1566) on the next island. During the same month in which the present painting was executed, Boudin wrote to Paul Durand-Ruel:
I am busy painting views of Venice, a superb town as I have no need to tell you, but somewhat disguised by the usual painters of the
area who have to some extent disfigured it by making it appear as a region warmed by the hottest suns... Venice on the other hand, like all luminous regions, is grey in colour, the atmosphere is soft and misty and the sky is decked with clouds just like the sky over
Normandy or Holland." (J. Selz, Eugène Boudin, New York, 1982, p. 85)
In this scene, the artist has placed his easel on the northern bank of the Giudecca, an island south of the city across the Giudecca Canal. From there, one can see two of the most distinguished Palladian churches of the city, the church of the Zitelle (circa 1582) on the right and the church of San Giorgio Maggiore (1566) on the next island. During the same month in which the present painting was executed, Boudin wrote to Paul Durand-Ruel:
I am busy painting views of Venice, a superb town as I have no need to tell you, but somewhat disguised by the usual painters of the
area who have to some extent disfigured it by making it appear as a region warmed by the hottest suns... Venice on the other hand, like all luminous regions, is grey in colour, the atmosphere is soft and misty and the sky is decked with clouds just like the sky over
Normandy or Holland." (J. Selz, Eugène Boudin, New York, 1982, p. 85)