Venice: The Punta della Dogana with S. Maria della Salute

Francesco Guardi captured Venice: The Punta della Dogana with S. Maria della Salute with oil on canvas. The painting presents a familiar picturesque view of Venice, but it is one that is also deeply shaped by institutional forces. Venice was a major maritime republic, and Guardi presents the city as a busy port and a site of religious pilgrimage. The church of Santa Maria della Salute was built in the 17th Century to commemorate the end of a plague. In Guardi’s time it had become central to Venetian identity and its annual festivals. The image creates meaning through architectural symbols of Venice. The buildings, waterways, and gondolas form a set of visual codes that would have been instantly recognizable to buyers in Venice’s thriving art market. As art historians, we look at the way Venice was shaped by the institutions of the church and the state, and we consult sources from city archives to understand the economic and political forces that influenced Venetian art production.