Storm at Sea

Francesco Guardi (attributed to) 1712 - 1793

Summary

This dramatic seascape depicts the effects of a violent storm in the Venetian lagoon. Five men are stranded on a rocky outcrop in the centre foreground, while another scrambles to safety behind them. Others wave frantically from the clifftop. In the left foreground, four sailors cling to the remains of their sinking boat. In the distance, more ships struggle against the gale. To the right of the scene, a mast is all that remains of a ship beneath the water. Guardi came from a family of Venetian artists. He worked first on religious paintings, initially with his father and then with his brother, until the latter's death in 1860. From then on he concentrated on vedute (views) and capricci (fantasy views) of Venice. This work has been attributed to him, because it conforms closely to the style of his last decade, although it can be very hard to distinguish Guardi's work from that of contemporary and other imitators.

Display Label

An Island in the Lagoon Lagoon Capriccio with a Ruined Arch Lagoon Capriccio with a Church Lagoon Capriccio with a Church and a Bridge Lagoon Capriccio with a Peasant and Cattle Storm at Sea Attributed to Francesco Guardi 1712-93 Oil on panel The upper and lower two paintings here are a pair, and the middle four a series. All are cappricci, or fantasy views, of 18th-century Venice, a genre of which Guardi was the master. They show the technique of his later years: a nervous, spirited approach that is very different from the measured and orderly style of Canaletto, the other famous view-painter of Venice. Assheton Bennett bequest 1979.522, 1979.523, 1979.525, 1979.524, 1979.526, 1979.521