Félix-François Georges Philibert Ziem was a French painter celebrated for his radiant landscapes and evocative cityscapes, especially of Venice. He was born on February 26, 1821, in Beaune, in the Burgundy region of France. His mother was a native Burgundian, while his father had emigrated from Croatia, an international heritage that perhaps foreshadowed the artist’s lifelong fascination with travel and faraway places.
Ziem began his studies at the School of Architecture in Dijon with every intention of pursuing a career in that field. After graduation, he worked briefly as an architect before a transformative journey to Venice in 1841 changed the course of his life. Enchanted by the city’s shimmering canals and luminous atmosphere, he began painting as a hobby, a pursuit that soon became his true vocation and enduring passion.
Venice would remain Ziem’s greatest muse, inspiring countless views of the lagoon and its magnificent architecture. However, his artistic curiosity extended far beyond Italy. A tireless traveler, he painted scenes from his native Burgundy, as well as from Constantinople, the Netherlands, and the Mediterranean coast. Ziem also created still lifes and portraits, though it was his sunlit, romantic landscapes that brought him the greatest acclaim.
In 1849, Ziem settled in Paris, residing in the vibrant Montmartre district. His work found great success at the Paris Salon, and his masterful use of color and light earned him admiration from contemporaries such as Corot and Rousseau. Over his lifetime, he received numerous honors, including membership in the Légion d’Honneur.
Félix Ziem died in 1911 and was laid to rest in Paris’s Père Lachaise Cemetery, among many of France’s most celebrated artists. Today, his paintings continue to be prized for their warmth, luminosity, and poetic evocation of a world seen through the eyes of a devoted traveler and lover of beauty.
In The Grand Canal, Félix Ziem presents one of his sweeping panoramic views of his beloved Venice, the storied city of northern Italy. Ziem first visited Venice in 1841 and was instantly captivated by its beauty. It is said that he abandoned his early career in architecture after laying eyes on this “watery city,” its network of shimmering canals inspiring him to capture its unparalleled vistas.
Venetian scenes such as this, bathed in Mediterranean light and rendered in a brilliant palette, became some of Ziem’s most sought-after works. A passionate traveler, he returned to Venice often, painting many of his most admired and successful canvases there.
In this work, Ziem offers a vivid yet idealized vision of the deep blue-green lagoon waters, where gondolas glide gracefully toward St. Mark’s Basilica, Venice’s most famous church and a masterpiece of Byzantine architecture, visible in the distance to the left. The painting reflects Ziem’s fascination both with the daily rhythms of Venetian life and with the architectural splendor of its early Roman and Gothic buildings.
Ziem’s rich, luminous colors heighten the city’s romantic atmosphere, earning Venice its poetic title as the “Queen of the Adriatic.” Rising into a brilliant blue sky streaked with white clouds, the tower of the Palazzo Ducale, adorned with fluttering flags, stands proudly above the white limestone and pink marble of the Doge’s Palace.
Meticulously rendered yet enchantingly atmospheric, The Grand Canal captures Venice as both a real place and an eternal vision, an homage to a city whose timeless beauty continues to inspire.
Arthur Tooth & Sons, New York
The Honorable Hugh J. Grant, February, 1899 purchased from teh above
Thence by descent until 2009