We mostly wandered. Venice is that kind of city. You absorb it best by just being in it. You don't need to actually see anything to understand it. And it is easy to like. But nonetheless, we did tour the Palazzo Ducale, the byzantine palace of the Doges. The Doges were the nominal leaders of Venice, elected for life, and each Doge was the Chief Magistrate. The palace itself is more interesting for its subtleties than for its phantasmagorical qualities.
Several themes represented themselves. The main motifs of Venetian Empire were present; the winged lion (representative of St Mark), St George, and San Sebastion. More interesting was the inclusions of Ottomans in many of the paintings; from councils receiving Venetian envoys, to Metsyns painting, The Mockery of Christ, with an Ottoman peering over Christ's shoulder, to Ottoman faces in the crowd in countless other paintings. I was reminded that the recognition and placement of the "other" (that may become an enemy) is one of the primary functions of empire.
The prisons were dank and toxic and Byron's naming of the Bridge of Sighs falls with full force on the mind. It was the last sight of earth for many. Two other notable sights; Vittore Carpaccio's famous painting, The Lion of St Mark and then we walked around a corner and I said to Karen, "There is Hell." It was Hieronymus Bosch's famous painting. It took a lot of time to take it all in - a lot of pain going on - but Bosch's painting is a true nightmare land.
From the Palace, we walked along the Grand Canal, peered into Harry's Bar (it was closed every time we came upon it), and found our way eventually to the Galleria dell' Academia, which houses paintings up to the 19th century. It's collection is perhaps adequate, when compared to great galleries of Florence, but it does have one prize; Giorgione's The Tempest. Like all great paintings we carry in our minds, it is a shock to come across it and at first it seems almost unreal. As enigmatic as ever, it offers up no clues as to its meaning. Its symbols and their meanings are lost to us and the painting anticipates surrealism. If nothing else, it provides insight into two temporal actions: expectation and tension (as anxiety) and although the painting has often been called "quiet", the figures have been caught frozen during the flash of lightning. A whole lot of things likely happened in the next frame.
Returned to the Barcara to cool down. The jazz was great, the beer terriffic. We had a thin crust pizza that was perfect and then more beer to wash it down. And because we didn't want to brave the heat, we had more beer after that.
Several themes represented themselves. The main motifs of Venetian Empire were present; the winged lion (representative of St Mark), St George, and San Sebastion. More interesting was the inclusions of Ottomans in many of the paintings; from councils receiving Venetian envoys, to Metsyns painting, The Mockery of Christ, with an Ottoman peering over Christ's shoulder, to Ottoman faces in the crowd in countless other paintings. I was reminded that the recognition and placement of the "other" (that may become an enemy) is one of the primary functions of empire.
The prisons were dank and toxic and Byron's naming of the Bridge of Sighs falls with full force on the mind. It was the last sight of earth for many. Two other notable sights; Vittore Carpaccio's famous painting, The Lion of St Mark and then we walked around a corner and I said to Karen, "There is Hell." It was Hieronymus Bosch's famous painting. It took a lot of time to take it all in - a lot of pain going on - but Bosch's painting is a true nightmare land.
From the Palace, we walked along the Grand Canal, peered into Harry's Bar (it was closed every time we came upon it), and found our way eventually to the Galleria dell' Academia, which houses paintings up to the 19th century. It's collection is perhaps adequate, when compared to great galleries of Florence, but it does have one prize; Giorgione's The Tempest. Like all great paintings we carry in our minds, it is a shock to come across it and at first it seems almost unreal. As enigmatic as ever, it offers up no clues as to its meaning. Its symbols and their meanings are lost to us and the painting anticipates surrealism. If nothing else, it provides insight into two temporal actions: expectation and tension (as anxiety) and although the painting has often been called "quiet", the figures have been caught frozen during the flash of lightning. A whole lot of things likely happened in the next frame.
Returned to the Barcara to cool down. The jazz was great, the beer terriffic. We had a thin crust pizza that was perfect and then more beer to wash it down. And because we didn't want to brave the heat, we had more beer after that.
Pictures: Top: Ice cream cone motif for Eyewear Store.
Bottom: Big Mistake as we return to the Street of the Assassins
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