John Singer Sargent (Florence, 1856 - 1925, London)
Santa Maria della Salute, Venice, 1903-1907
Watercolor on paper, 34.9 x 53.5 cm (13 3/4 x 21 1/16 in.)
This horizontal watercolor painting shows a closeup view of a canal in Venice with a partial view of the church of Santa Maria della Salute from behind to our right. The church buildings’ domes and spires are clearly visible, but the lower portion of the buildings are obscured by boats in the canal and trees and bushes alongside it. From our left and into the center of the painting is a cropped view of fishing boats with towering masts and sails. The boat to our left is white with brown trim and a brown design on the side. The boat in the center is painted in vivid tones of turquoise, purple, and green, and these colors are reflected in the water below. A streak of brown-orange color bisects the painting from our lower left to our upper right. In the bottom corner to our right is the signature John S. Sargent.
Blue Room
Commentary
By depicting the back of Santa Maria della Salute, Sargent renders this iconic Venetian site from an unusual, less formal perspective. The cropped view of fishing boats moored in the Giudecca Canal suggests the spontaneity of a modern snapshot. With its golden sunlight and striking composition, this is one of Sargent’s most brilliant watercolors.
Source: Oliver Tostmann and Anne-Marie Eze, The Inscrutable Eye: Watercolors by John Singer Sargent in Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection, exhibition on view in the Museum's Fenway Gallery, October 31, 2013–January 20, 2014.
Source: Oliver Tostmann and Anne-Marie Eze, The Inscrutable Eye: Watercolors by John Singer Sargent in Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection, exhibition on view in the Museum's Fenway Gallery, October 31, 2013–January 20, 2014.