Venetian shrines and daily life

Back when I studied History of Art I spent a year in Venice researching various secular motifs in 18th Century Venetian painting. My assumption from that time was that Venice, unlike Rome and Florence, was not particularly a centre for religious iconography. However, on recent visits, walking around the city with an objective eye, I have noticed many shrines and altarpieces and have photographed a few that have caught my attention.

In these next images, the Venetian shrines are combined with signs of everyday, contemporary life. The photograph below features hanging laundry as a backdrop:

Below is a detail from behind the lace curtains:

The next two photographs combine religious iconography and graffiti:

 

Here I liked the Madonna and Child combined with the house number and the exposed pipe work:

And next are a series of Venetian Madonnas, protected behind railings:

 

 

 

i was intrigued by this detail on the side of a building on the Zattere. Nestled like twin babies in a womb, these two monks (?) both have similar arm positions. The  one on the left  has crossed both hands on his chest whilst holding a cross; the figure on the right has a hand on his heart and the other hand cradling what could be a flame to his belly:

Next a couple of pictures featuring friends and family; firstly my old Venetian friend, photographer Rossano Sanavio. The small shrine reflects the building facades and you can just make out an outstretched arm – part of the Crucifixion scene represented –  creating an abstract mix:

My sons striking a pose in front of a religious painting accompanied by floral tributes in a Venetian side street:

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.