Michele Marieschi

Private Collection, France.

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This painting has been quite recently restored and should be hung as is. The canvas has been lined using glue as an adhesive and although very slight cracking is visible in the upper center, the surface is stable. The buildings in the foreground and the water are in very good condition. They are not abraded and there are no significant paint losses anywhere throughout this passage. There are some small restorations in the lower part of the water and perhaps a few other tiny spots, none of any significance. In the sky there has been some slight abrasion in the past, there is a loss in the roundest cloud on the left, a group of restorations in the upper right sky and some random other smaller restorations elsewhere in the sky. It is to be expected that pictures of this period suffer slightly in the sky and this is no exception, however the restoration is good and the condition generally is excellent.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

This beautifully preserved veduta painting of the Grand Canal can be dated to 1736-1738, based on key similarities with another painting by Marieschi with the same dimensions and of a comparable view. This comparative picture (see F. Montecuccoli degli Erri and F. Pedrocco, Marieschi, Milan 1999, p. 294, cat. no. 74, reproduced, [as with Leonard Koetser, London]), differs from the present composition only slightly in that it includes an additional boat in the foreground, as well as slightly adjusted foreground figures. Despite these subtle variances, a chronological similarity is evident, according to Succi, due to the appearance of the palace belonging to the Balbi Valmarana family, near the Santi Apostolo, visible in both pictures behind the boats. The façade of this building was, in fact, completely rebuilt (designed by Antonio Vicentini), in 1740. Given that the two paintings depict views of the palazzo prior to its 1740 restoration, this date can be considered a valid terminus ante quem date for both pictures.

Ralph Toledano published another comparable version of the present painting in his 1988 monograph on Marieschi, in which he also mentions the Koetser version. Both paintings discussed in that monograph (and also the present painting) are related to the etching bearing number 20 in the second edition of the famed Magnificentiores Selectioresque Urbis Venetiarum Prospectus, published in Venice by Marieschi in 1741.

In a 2005 certificate, Toledano also comments on the beautiful quality of the present composition, stating, "In this painting, Marieschi has described the façades of the imposing palaces with subtle and delicately layered brushstrokes of beige, brown, greyish and pink hues, suggesting by his clever touches the ever changing effects of the Venetian light upon the stones. The peculiarly intelligent way the impastos are mixed, melting their exuberance into a harmonious togetherness is to be considered his hallmark."