San Giorgio Maggiore, one of three great churches designed by Andrea Palladio for Venice, is situated in a prominent location on a small island across the Bacino di San Marco from the Doge'sl Palace and the Piazza San Marco. It was built between 1566 and 1589, although the façade was not completed until 1611. This picture and its companion are usually dated to the late 1760s or early 1770s.
Francesco Guardi (Italian (Venetian), 1712 - 1793)
Guardi is famous for his 'vedute' (view paintings of Venice). He was influenced by Canaletto, but did not follow his precise clear style. He introduced a greater feeling for changing light effects and atmosphere into his paintings. Guardi's father, Domenico, and elder brother Gian Antonio were painters, and Francesco had begun his career collaborating with his brother on religious, historical and mythological works. He turned to view painting around 1750 and found ready buyers, not among Venetians, but in foreign visitors who wished to take paintings of Venice home as mementos of the spectacular city.
