Luca Carlevarijs Paintings of Venice mapped

Luca Carlevarijs (1663-1730) was among the first to paint realistic scenes in Venice, perhaps after being inspired on a trip to Rome where he saw others doing similar work.

The sites he painted are the major landmarks, but with fascinating detail in the citizenry that are included.  He painted the life of Venice, not just the structures or grandeur.  There remains a vitality of people living life as Venetians, and not a nostalgia tableau as some 19th and 20th C painters have rendered it.

Luca Carlevarijs paintings geocoded

The Bridge for the Feast of the Madonna della Salute

by Luca Carlevarijs 

Venetian Palazzo Paintings Geocoded

Most great landscape painters who have had the opportunity  have tried their hand at capturing the magic that is the combination of water and architecture in Venice.  The range of their styles brings to our attention the fact that no site has only one appearance: our attention is always at work, so that every impression is an interpretation rather than a simple "observation".

Compare centuries of views and interpretations though a geo-organized collection of hundreds of masterpiece paintings of Venice, along the Grand Canal and tucked in quiet corners.

Palazzo Paintings geocoded

Francesco Guardi Paintings Mapped in GeocodedArt.com

Francesco Guardi (1712-1793) paintings included many interiors, fantasy scenes based on ancient architectural ruins, and a few dozen views that reflect the real arrangement of structures in Venice (with varying accuracy).

Compared to others who generate keepsakes for tourists, Guardi works are more emotionally loaded, and are remarked on for their atmosphere,  If one could capture what the air would have felt (and smelt) like while standing on these locations, it might be associated with his frequently overcast skies.

Guardi paintings geocoded

The Three-Arched Bridge at Cannaregio

by Francesco Guardi

Michele Giovanni Marieschi Paintings in GeocodedArt

Michele Giovanni Marieschi (1710-1743) paintings of Venice did not feature bright sunshine.  The skies tended to be brooding, there are not the shadows that lent depth and realism to the view of other vedute painters, and the water  surface does not have the shimmer that has enchanted later painters who came to see what the great painters saw.
He did his share of romantic capriccios, but seems not to have traveled outside Venice to paint views of other locations.

Michele Giovanni Marieschi paintings geocoded

The Grand Canal at the level of the Pescheria and of Palazzo Michiel alle Colonne

by Michele Giovanni Marieschi

John Singer Sargent Paintings in GeoCodedArt.com

John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) is best known for his many many portraits of those who could afford to commission him, but he also relentlessly sketched his surroundings everywhere he went (and he went a lot of places).
There are many watercolors that provide just a glimpse of a place, but he did finished oil works of townscapes and landscapes across four continents; very typically his perspective was a close-up view of some details of a structure that other artists would have represented in an authoritative angle against a wide sky.
In natural settings he often includes figures in very un-self conscious relaxation; one would not call them poses.  But the attitudes he captures in their demeanor may be related to his ability to capture a personality in a single pose in a formal portrait.
The town views generally have a few of the citizenry in the frame, but if present, they seem to be there more as a matter of happenstance rather than an effort by the artists to show a representation of daily life at the spot chosen.

John Singer Sargent paintings geocoded

Corner of the Church of San Stae, Venice

by John Singer Sargent (1856 - 1925)

Rubens Santoro Venice Paintings Mapped

Rubens Santoro (1859-1942) painted intimates scenes of life on the canals of Venice: beautiful structures, ample sunshine, shimmering water surfaces, and not a care in the world. The buildings that he painted, which were never the monumental, state-structures so familiar from every other painters' work, have colors that dazzle against the blue skies and reflect alluringly in the smooth canal mirrors.

Rubens Santoro paintings geocoded

A gondola ride, Veniceby Rubens Santoro

Antonietta Brandeis Paintings Geocoded

Antonietta Brandeis (1848-1926) painted scenes of prominent structures throughout Italy, being one of the few to include the city of Bologna in the her collection.  Otherwise she covered most of the views that have been painted  by many others over the centuries.

Her views generally are of clear skies and a crystal atmosphere; there is no overhang of lighting or conditions to influence your attitude toward what is before you; the very stones of the buildings must tell their story.

Antonietta Brandeis paintings geocoded

The Arch of Drussus, Rome

by Antonietta Brandei

Antonio Joli Paintings in GeoCodedArt.com

Antonio Joli (1700-1777) Paintings geocoded throughout Italy, Spain, and London.  Joli was in England before Canaletto but did fewer works there before visiting the royal sites in Spain.  His body of work also features more of southern Italy, and particularly his view in Naples involved more scenes on open water than was ever the case for the more famous vedute painters.

Antonio Joli paintings geocoded

  View of La Iglesia y la Plaza de San Antonio, Aranjuez 

by Antonio Joli

Forty Richard Wilson Paintings in GeoCodedArt

Richard Wilson (1713-1782) produced a mix of portraits and landscape scenes early in his career, and the landscapes were realistic depictions his surroundings.  His travels to Italy coincided with a full emphasis on landscapes and a shift in their subject: in addition to actual scenes with place names, there were increasing numbers of idealized "classical landscapes", perhaps inspired by the lore and legend of the Italian countryside.  Even those works which have a grounding in showing a single identifiable locations are somewhat sentimental; he did not include any contemporary or monumental architecture.   Misty ruins were more of an inspiration.

Richard Wilson paintings geocoded

Bridge of Augustus at Rimini

By Richard Wilson

John Brett Paintings in GeoCodedArt

John Brett (1830-1902) paintings often feature a very colorful and wide open horizon.  The earth itself seems alive somehow, with uneven but not particularly dramatic terrain.  But maybe the west of England is just like that.

It is not uncommon that the signal feature which gives the work its name is barely discernible: the great wide, and seemingly wild, world, is of greater interest.

John Brett paintings geocoded

A View Of Whitby From The Moors

by  John Brett

Francis Danby Paintings in GeoCodedArt

Francis Danby (1793-1861) paintings in the UK were of the west much more than southeast, and his views were always country-based: though there may be a recognizable feature of a city in the distance, life in the city is never what he captured.  His subject matter, in its viewpoint, is more a constant in his work than the style of the work or typical coloring.  More than many landscape artists, he appears to have adapted his style to the location.  This carries over to his work on continental scenes, which he did more of than many British artists.

Francis Danby paintings geocoded

View of Clifton from Leigh Woods

by Francis Danby

Patrick Nasmyth Paintings Geocoded

Patrick Nasmyth (1787–1831) paintings might be better termed "treescsapes" than landscapes.  Even his paintings which have a landmark, and/or have a title that indicates the location of the view (a very large number are simply titled "Landscape"), the primary visual interest is in the foliage.   Minutely detailed trees frame the view and generally obscure the horizon.  Their backdrop are often dramatically lit clouds which are similar to the trees in their irregular shape and curvature, but are a bland shadow compared to the complex wonder that are the living things: stately yet dynamic; seemingly solid yet growing.

Patrick Nasmyth paintings geocoded

A view of the Douglas Bridge near Inverary, Argyllshire

By Patrick Nasmyth

Alfred East Paintings Geocoded

Alfred East (1849–1913) partings have a muted hazy quality, without bright sunshine nor vivid colors nor deep shadows.  The title of many of his works are not specific about their location; and in many of the works in which a place name is in the title, the image could in fact be any of a number of places.  But for the artist there was something about the feel of the place that could be matched to its name.
Only a handful of his works have a structure or landmark that would unlikely identify the location, and these works do not make that feature the focus of the piece; in all cases the atmosphere or feel of the place is the focus (though generally out of focus).

In 1907 he published  The Art of Landscape Painting in Oil Colour, a 193 page review of his approach to Grass, Skies, Trees, Reflection, etc, according to the chapter titles.

Alfred East paintings geocoded

Kirkstall Abbey

By Alfred East

Thirty John Wilson Carmichael Paintings Geocoded

John Wilson Carmichael (1800-1868) paintings are a prime example of how a culture is reflected in what a painter chooses to capture (or what the artist believes he can find a market for).  Like George Chambers, he reflects the sea-faring nature of his country, particularly showing the interface of land-based people and the ports and vessels they use to transcend their limits.  Carmichael's body of work includes a couple of view of the British Navy destroying the the land interface of non-English places.

John Wilson Carmichael paintings geocoded

The Brayford Pool and Lincoln Cathedral
by John Wilson Carmichael 

George Chambers Paintings in GeoCodedArt.com

George Chambers (1803-1840) painted maritime scenes with identifiable landmarks on shore.  Rather than just show the majesty of a vessel at full sail mastering the open seas, his views make a connection between we land-based observers and the instruments that can carry us to all points on the globe.  Harbors are of particular interest as the transition point for our modes of being.

George Chambers paintings geocoded

Entrance to Portsmouth Harbour

by George Chambers

Henry Pether Paintings Geocoded

Henry Pether (1828-1865) did a large number of paintings by moonlight, including some scenes where the same location was painted by day and by night.  The subject of his dozens of paintings in moonlight were usually recognizable landmarks, almost evenly split between London and Venice.  The silhouettes of well-known structures lends more of a story to the images than there would be if were a simple river scene by moonlight (a few of which he did).  By and large, though, the works are identified by location, and have a intriguing air about them: without any other persons out at these hours, the viewer is left to imagine their own participation in the enchanting atmosphere.

Henry Pether paintings geocoded

Marlow On Thames 

by Henry Pether

George Cole Paintings in GeocodedArt.com

George Cole (1810-1883) paintings of outdoor scenes bear a strong resemblance to the work of his son, George Vicat Cole. The elder did more port scenes and landmark structures, though never with an eye to record impressive architecture.  His handful of views around Windsor Castle seem just to be the location of pleasing countryside (a common trait in royal locations).  The elder also worked in portraits an animal studies, but the wide open country views were his most common, and were the subject almost exclusively adopted by his son,

George Cole paintings geocoded

The London Road, Portsdown Hill
by George Cole

George Vicat Cole Paintings Geocoded

George Vicat Cole (1833-1893) painted almost exclusively outdoor scenes, and these only occasionally included any man-made structure, or any evidence of human presence. His works generally feature overcast skies, without direct sunlight, leaving the edges of most objects are a little blurred.  Equally hazy are the specific locations of most of his scenes: the majority do not carry a title that would identify the spot of the pleasing "Country Life" or "Landscape with Sheep".  They do all possess a far horizon, the sort of spot that would make a passerby to stop for a moment to consider what a pleasant land they were passing through.

George Vicat Cole paintings geocoded

On the Tamar, Devon
by George Vicat Cole

William Marlow Paintings in GeocodedArt.com

William Marlow (1740-1813) painted scenes across England and in some of the top tourists sites in Italy, with some views of the south of France thrown in.  His works are usually focused on a prominent man-made structure but with lots of sky and water included.  The skies are never a brilliant blue but cast a mood on the works, a sort of other-worldly backdrop that puts the accomplishment of man in a context.  Perhaps he brought the weather with him, but his Italian views are no more sunny than those 

William Marlow Paintings geocoded

View of the Bay of Naples from Posillipo

by William Marlow

Dozens of Paintings of Rome Geocoded

Painters of many nations have been enchanted by the Eternal City,  and have tried to capture on canvas some of the grandeur, the glory and the significance of the place.  

Over the centuries, different viewpoints have focused on the splendor of the symbols, or on what the lessons that might be learned from contemplating what was lost.

With the exception of Ippolito Caffi, most of the fine art renderings of Rome done after 1800 have been done by non-Italians: first by Dutch; then by French, Scandinavians and Russians, then Americans.

Follow the link to see each view, and compare to Street Views today.

Paintings of Rome Geocoded

Rome: View of the Piazza di San Giovanni in Laterano
by Bernardo Bellotto

Hendrik Frans van Lint Paintings in GeocodedArt.com

Hendrik Frans van Lint (1684-1763)  painted many "Italianate" scenes of soft focus, indirect light, fair skies, and lush vegetation.  In less than 20 of his works did he include details of a specific location being represented.  

When in Rome, though, he made faithful representations of some of landmark structures, in something of a "postcard" style.  In these views, any persons in the scene were depicted at a safe enough distance so as to not distract from the objects of interest.

Hendrik Frans van Lint paintings geocoded

View of Tivoli
by Hendril Frans van Lint

Jacques Carabain Paintings in GeoCodedArt

Jacques Carabain (1834-1933) painted city views that included interesting street activity, but you would look a long time to find a wide horizon in any of his works.  His interest was in the richness of architectural detail available in every viewpoint; his were usually some out-of-the-way item of interest rather than grand structures or iconic views that all would have been familiar with. 

He painted town scenes in Low Countries, Germany, and northern Italy, and more than a few of his paintings have as their subject the market day activities in towns that are not the subject of fine art by any other view painters.

Jacques Carabain Paintings geocoded

The Arche Scaligere, Verona

by Jacques Carabain

François-Marius Granet Paintings Geocoded

François-Marius Granet (1775-1849) produced a range of indoor and outdoor paintings, and a vast collection of drawings and watercolors.  His subjects were never ornate nor delicate, and the simpler media that he turned to may have served adequately to convey what he wanted to capture.

His interiors are moody, heavy with contemplation of subjects that do not benefit from speculation in the light of day.  The exterior views, mostly in the area of Rome, rarely include the people that were central to interior scenes.  Bright sunshine is a rarity, though they are in central Italy; he seems more interested in the meaning of these places than in their beauty.

Francois-Marius Granet in geocodedArt.com

Tivoli
by Fracois-Marius Granet

Ten Paintings of Palermo geocoded

The iconic profile of the sea front has been rendered in every shade and in every atmospheric condition.  Is it really the place that is being shown in such different views, or is it the attitude of the artist that is being captured?  With such a history of cultural cross-currents, we should not expect a single response to "What does Palermo look like?"

Paintings of Palermo geocoded

Palermo



by Aleksey Petrovich Bogolyubov