Venice - Entry 5 - Art

What I will be sharing with you this evening, are photographs taken at the Museo Correr in St. Mark's Square in Venice.  As one would expect it was an amazing museum, but I will try to limit myself to the photographs of things that I found especially noteworthy on a personal level.

I love furniture that is designed for storage purposes - I really appreciate things that make organization not only possible but also a pleasure.  And that may also be because I love imagining what I would put in the drawers or cabinets and/or because I have so many things that could be/should be organized!  Whatever the case, here is a beauty:

 The ceiling is a marvel:

The first rooms we visited focused on the industries in Venice here the weaving of cloth:

Spindles used in spinning:

Now these are fun!  I knew the Japanese have their gaitas, other cultures have their versions of shoes that help keep their feet above wet and unpleasantness, but the Venetians put them all to shame.  Look at these zoccoli or "clogs".  After seeing pictures of aqua alta (high water), I have a better understanding of why someone would risk his/her neck by wearing these!

Remember the importance of images?  Here is a beautiful, very large banner:

and a close up:

This painting  (the glass shielding the painting reflects an image from the room, but if you look carefully you can see the red robe covering the shoulder) of Dio Padre or "God the Father".  It was mounted above a doorway and was a very effective placement!

The labels are for the painting above and the Durer below.  (Sorry, I couldn't find a modern German font - no umlaut for the "u" in Durer's name.)

This is one of the works of art that really spoke to me.  As a teen I used to pour over Durer's woodcuts in books I borrowed from the library, and here is a real woodcut by the master (and still in the book which you can't see).  With color!  Just look at those dragons!  St.Michael certainly has his hands full!  There is so much going on in this tiny space.  Durer was carving a battle, and the viewer can feel the energy, the swirl of bodies, and the thrust of weapons.  He was a master!

Another incredible ceiling:

Design on the floor:

Gorgeous shadow play:

Two fabulous Murano crystal chandeliers:

Another of my idols - Breughel.  This one just took my breath away!  First, it's a genuine Breughel's, and it's tiny (relatively speaking) - roughly 14" X 10.5".  Second, to the best of my knowledge, I have never see it in reproduction in any art book that I perused (trust me, I used to spend hours looking through books with color prints of art), and of course, I'd never seen the original, either.  Deep breath needed.  

This is a restoration in progress - a truly lovely wooden carving of Mary if I remember correctly or possibly an angel.

There is such calm in its/her face.  If it's Mary, I would say her expression shows acceptance or resignation.

And the library with incredible wood and a HUGE globe!

And that's only part of it.  The museum is very large, and it is full of glorious things. 

But this ends my photographic journey through Italy - severely edited, of course.  It was a dream of a trip thanks to DH and C.  They listened to us when we told them what we wanted to see and do, they planned everything - from sites, to hotels, to meals, to transportation, and more.  They were unfailingly calm and cheerful.  In fact, they were such fun to travel with, we're ready to sign on whenever they feel they can tolerate us again.  Or should I have said, "IF they can tolerate us again.

You two are the best, Thank You!