The courtyard of the Doge's Palace in Venice 1867

Rudolf von Alt captured the courtyard of the Doge's Palace in Venice in a watercolor measuring 38.8 by 52.5 centimeters. Alt, who lived through much of the 19th century, witnessed significant social and political changes that influenced artistic representations of public and private spaces. The painting presents a picturesque, almost romanticized, view of Venetian life, yet it prompts questions about access and power within such spaces. Who populates this courtyard? And how do their identities—gender, class, nationality—affect their interaction with this center of Venetian authority? The figures are diminutive, almost lost within the grandeur of the architecture. There is a woman standing alone in the courtyard, she is possibly excluded from the predominant masculine narrative embodied by the palace. Alt’s painting invites us to reflect on the layers of history and social dynamics embedded in architectural spaces. It encourages us to consider whose stories are told and whose are omitted. The artwork prompts us to think critically about the intersections of identity and place.