Venice, the Isola di San Lazzaro degli Armeni; Venice, the Isola di Sant'Elena

Giacomo Guardi continued in the view-painting tradition embraced by his father, Francesco, who succeeded Canaletto as the most celebrated painter of Venetian views in the second half of the 18th century. The Guardis' ethereal panoramas were popular with the nobility traveling through Italy on their Grand Tour, for which Venice was an essential destination. Paintings such as this small-scale pair were acquired as souvenirs, sometimes commissioned by patrons but often created specifically for this passing tourist trade (rather like modern-day 'postcards'). These specific views, of the islands of San Lazzaro degli Armeni and of Sant’Elena, are unusual and the pictures may once have formed part of a larger series. Indeed, the exact same views (with different staffage) are included among the sites depicted in a series of gouaches by Giacomo (see, for example: Christie's, London, 4 June 2019, lot 122 and Christie's, Milan, 28 November 2007, lot 121). Giacomo specialized in painting on a small scale, in both gouache and oils, and the silvery tonality and nervous energy of this veduta, particularly the distinctive use of black to articulate spidery figures, are entirely characteristic of the artist's technique.