Painting Venice. A notion that appeals to this romantic grand turista. We’ve been seeing artists sketching and painting in Venice and all over Europe this spring, setting up easels and drawing in sketchbooks, everywhere from the cobblestone lanes of the old town of Kotor to the waterfront at Venice’s Rialto markets. And I’ve been thinking about doing the same.
With two weeks in Northern Italy‘s enchanting city of Venice during our year-long grand tour of the world dedicated to slow, local and experiential travel, I was keen to learn to paint in Venice. I loved the idea of setting up an easel in front of one of the windows of the 17th-century palazzo rental, which boasted breathtaking Grand Canal views.
The grand tourists painted, of course, but I’ve wanted to paint watercolours since I was a child, long before I knew anything about the history of the European grand tour, which had partly inspired our project. My mother drew well – she created exquisite pen and ink pieces – and I taught myself to draw as a teen.
For me, painting Venice meant painting with watercolours. But I’ve never attempted watercolours though and only thought about learning to paint recently when my uncle who paints with oils swore that watercolour painting was easy to learn. How easy, I wondered?
Before buying a paintbox I decided to get some advice from Venetian-born watercolourist Nicola Tenderini, who has a small shop and art studio right near Rialto markets, where he sells the pretty watercolours that he’s painted and made into prints and beautiful gifts, such as notebooks, bookmarks, and recipe books.
I love Nicola’s watercolour paintings because the colours capture Venice in all its moods and his gifts make authentic mementos that are an excellent alternative to the trashy ‘made in China’ souvenirs sold at the stalls close by.
I meet with Nicola over an Aperol spritz to ask the watercolourist about his career as an artist in Venice, his tips for learning how to paint in watercolours, the best places to paint in Venice, the most inspiring Venetian painters and their paintings to seek out, the best art museums in Venice, where to learn to paint in Venice, and where to buy art supplies in Venice.
Painting Venice – Tips from a Local Artist on All Things Art in Venice
Q. When and why did you start painting Venice?
A. I don’t remember exactly when art entered my life, but it became important to me between the ages of 14 and 16, when I began painting Venice after school. I went to the Liceo Artistico Statale, the main art school in Venezia. I did very strange illustrations, a mixed of comics and art. I didn’t really like to study but when I painted I found a real expression of my energies.
Q. Did painting come easy to you?
A. To paint was easy – anybody can paint – but it is difficult to make it work for you, to gain from your work a sufficient level of money to have a normal life.
Q. Why do you paint with watercolours?
A. I also paint oils on wood, and I prefer this surface, and sometimes ink on paper, or acrylic, but I like using watercolours because of the simple and primitive techniques, just water and colour. It’s an honest technique.
Q. Any tips for someone learning to paint with watercolours?
A. To be a good figurative painter, you must be a good watercolourist, and to paint watercolours you should have a good knowledge of perspective and proportions. It’s important to learn how to draw and design with a pencil, so you can start with a good drawing, although with contemporary art painters seem to have lost these skills. The watercolour is the sum of transparent levels. All that you paint is all that you see. The error is not to complicate the painting. There should be a balance of colour.
Q. Most inspiring places to paint in Venice?
A. There are some places that I prefer to paint such as the river of Giudecca, S. Giorgio Island, Castello, and the area around Salute Church. I look at Venice through the eyes of those of us who live here. Sometimes I take photographs and paint from a photo, but most of the time I don’t because I have Venice in my mind, its colours, its shadows, its reflections.
Q. Most inspiring Venice art museums to visit?
A. Scuola S. Rocco, because inside there are a wonderful series of paintings of Tiepolo and Tintoretto, and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. There is also a small gallery called Holly Snapp Gallery on Calle delle Botteghe near S. Stefano where there are only exhibitions of watercolourists.
Q. Quintessential Venetian painters and paintings I should look to for inspiration?
A. There are too many paintings and artists in Venice I love: Giuseppe Cherubini or Ettore Tito or Emma Ciardi… but if I had to say one, probably William Turner when he painted Venice in watercolour. These paintings are wonderful.
Q. Best school to learn to paint in Venice?
A. The Scuola di Grafica, where you can learn the basics of drawing and design and all the techniques for painting, but it is a very serious school.
Q. Best place to buy painting supplies in Venice?
A. Gabriele Scarpa behind S. Mark Square near Bacino Orseolo. I buy all my supplies there.
Q. Best gift for beginner painters and travellers?
A. A small box of Windsor and Newton paints – watercolours are perfect for travellers and outdoor painting!
Nicola Tenderini Atelier e Artshop
Campo Bella Vienna-Erberia, San Polo, Venice
T: 39 0415226532
More Tips to Getting Beneath the Skin of Venice
If you’re planning a Venice trip, see more of our Venice guides, interviews and stories on everything from learning about Venice, a city built on water, and its islands and lagoons by boat on a traditional Venetian skiff with marine scientist Luca Zaggia to learning about Venetian Renaissance history and architecture on a walking tour with social historian Monica Vidonia.
We’ve got a Weekend in Venice itinerary and local tips from the Venetian publishers of My Local Guide to Venice, a guide to the best Venice shops and boutiques, including that of master bookbinder Paolo Albi, and local tips to shopping Rialto markets by the owner of our favourite Venetian restaurant.
Food and wine lovers should see our lessons on Veneto wines from a local sommelier, our stories on a Venetian cooking class with a Countess and lunch at Venetian farm-to-table restaurant Venissa, and Terence’s recipes for poached eggs with asparagus and pancetta for Weekend Eggs and bigoli con salsa for The Dish on the quintessential dishes of places we’re settling into this year.
Wonderful interview and observations! I always appreciate seeing elements through an artist’s eyes. This is very fitting for the production I’m currently running, “Appoggiatura.”
Thanks, Brooke! I’ll have to head to your site and find out all about your project. Thanks for dropping by!