Masons, Painters, Glass-workers, Printers

Some prefer the pure design:
Give me my gorge of colour, glut of gold
In a glory round the Virgin made for me!
Titian’s the man, not monk Angelico
Who traces you some timid chalky ghost
That turns the church into a charnel.
— Robert Browning

Venice and the Late Bloom of the Fine Arts

Absorbed by commerce and drawn irresistibly toward the East, Venice long lagged behind Tuscany in the cultivation of the finer arts. Her earliest craftsmen were Byzantines, and St Mark’s Basilica itself was modelled on the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople, adorned with mosaics executed by artists from that city.

These early masters possessed a refined sense of design and an inexhaustible inventiveness. The sculpted reliefs embedded in the façades of St Mark’s and scattered across Venetian palaces still testify to their artistic greatness.

By the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, however, Byzantine art had entered a phase of decline. The earliest signs of native Venetian sculpture appear as early as the twelfth century, in the crude carvings supporting the tabernacle of the high altar at St Mark’s. Yet it is only with the emergence of Gothic, Transitional, and early Renaissance masters that Venice’s true importance in the history of masonry and sculpture becomes clear.

Early Influences and the Rise of Venetian Masters

While the influence of the Pisani is unquestionable, it remains uncertain whether any of them actually worked in Venice. What is certain is the strong Tuscan presence:

• Nicolo Lamberti contributed to the main archivolt of St Mark’s.
• Florentine artists carved capitals and figures for the Ducal Palace.
• Arnolfo di Cambio introduced the now-famous tomb design with angels drawing aside a curtain to reveal the deceased.

Among the earliest Venetian sculptors, the Massegne and the Buoni stand out. Their biographies remain obscure, but their works endure.

The Massegne

Jacobello and Piero delle Massegne, active in the late fourteenth century, left remarkable sculptures:

• Apostles and saints in St Mark’s
• The portal of S. Stefano
• The lunette at the Frari
• The tomb of Simone Dandolo

The Buoni

Bartolomeo Buon, credited with the Porta della Carta (1439), demonstrated extraordinary mastery. Though much of the sculpture at the Ducal Palace has been restored, the surviving head of Doge Foscari confirms his genius.

Riccio, Rizzo, and the Problem of Names

Before surnames became common, artists were often known by nicknames, creating confusion that still troubles historians. The name Riccio (or Rizzo) refers to several figures whose identities overlap:

• Andrea Riccio of Padua, linked by Vasari to the statues of Adam and Eve
• Antonio Riccio of Verona, architect of the Ducal Palace after the fire of 1483
• Antonio Bregno, sometimes identified as Riccio himself

Documents reveal that Antonio Riccio eventually fled Venice after financial fraud, leaving the Ducal Palace unfinished.

The Lombardi Dynasty and the Venetian Renaissance

No family shaped early Renaissance Venice more profoundly than the Lombardi.

Pietro Lombardo

Active from 1462, Pietro designed the exquisite Church of Santa Maria dei Miracoli and later became chief architect of the Republic. His sculptures in S. Stefano and altars in St Mark’s remain among his finest works.

His Legacy

• Antonio Lombardo collaborated on major tombs and bronze works
• Tullio Lombardo, the greatest sculptor of the family, created the reliefs of the Scuola di San Marco and the tomb of Giovanni Mocenigo
• The Lombardi school produced masterpieces such as the Cappella Giustiniano

Alessandro Leopardi and the Greek Ideal

Alessandro Leopardi (1450–1521) elevated Venetian sculpture to its highest technical perfection. Unlike Tuscan artists who relied on Roman models, Venetians had direct access to Greek originals through the Republic’s eastern territories.

His masterpieces include:

• The Vendramin Tomb at S. Zanipolo
• The completion of the Colleoni equestrian statue
• Bronze flagstaff bases in Piazza San Marco

Yet as Renaissance art drifted from nature toward ornament and spectacle, individuality faded. Venice, wealthy and politically stable, became fertile ground for artistic display rather than innovation.

Sansovino and the Monumental City

The most influential figure of the sixteenth century in Venice was Jacopo Sansovino (1477–1570), a Florentine sculptor and architect.

After the Sack of Rome in 1527, he settled in Venice and soon became chief architect of the Republic. His crowning achievement, the Libreria Vecchia, was praised by Palladio as the richest building erected since antiquity.

Despite a dramatic imprisonment following a structural collapse, Sansovino was exonerated and restored to office. His works include:

• The Scala d’Oro
• Statues of Mars and Neptune
• Bronze doors and reliefs in St Mark’s

Beloved for his generosity and wisdom, Sansovino remained vigorous into extreme old age.

Late Renaissance and Baroque Masters

Among Sansovino’s followers:

• Girolamo Campagna, known for expressive bronze figures
• Alessandro Vittoria, prolific but uneven
• Michele Sammichele, master architect and military engineer

Later came Andrea Palladio, whose churches — San Giorgio Maggiore and Il Redentore — represent the austere perfection of late Renaissance architecture.

The Baroque Turn

The seventeenth century culminated in Baldassare Longhena, architect of:

• Santa Maria della Salute
• Palazzo Pesaro
• Palazzo Rezzonico

His massive constructions imposed enormous weight on Venice’s fragile soil, but they also defined the city’s Baroque identity.

Conclusion

Venice may have entered the world of fine arts later than Florence, but once awakened, she transformed art into spectacle, stone into ceremony, and architecture into political expression. From Byzantine mosaics to Baroque grandeur, Venetian art remains inseparable from the city’s unique blend of wealth, stability, and theatrical ambition.