Studio RT Ltd

Description

We are delighted to bring to the market this detailed and very well executed watercolour by the Italian artist G. Saetta, who as signed the painting in the lower left hand corner as shown. The painting depicts a view of the Grand Canal in Venice at sunset, with the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute and the Dogana or Customs House to the far right. The painting must have been executed from the Accademia Bridge.

We have found only one other watercolour by this artist, also of a sunset scene in Venice, but a view of the Doge's Palace and San Marco from the lagoon, which is in The Art Institute of Chicago and can be viewed online. They give his dates as 1800-1899, which normally means the work is 19th C. but nobody know the dates of the artist. However, there is another 19th Century Italian artist by the name of Giuseppe Saletta or G. Saletta, whose signature, work, palette are virtually identical, except for the missing L in the signature. Some of the auction sites are listing the Venetian watercolours of G. Saletta under an 18th artist called Carlo Giuseppe Saletta 1770-1843, about whom we can find nothing either. It may well be that there was an 18th Century artist by this name with these dates, but he certainly wasn't painting watercolours of Venice that are obviously late 19th Century.

As the majority of works of Venice in the late 19th Century were painted for the tourists of the day, it is possible that Saletta and Saetta were used by the same artists for different shops or galleries selling thei work. We can find no listing for any of these artists in Benezit, which is our main source for Continental artists.

The painting has been newly double mounted in two-tone acid-free mountboard and newly framed in a 1 1/4" gilt frame to suit. It will be supplied wired and ready to hang.

Image size: 12 3/8" x 6 1/8" - 31.45cm x 15.6cm

Frame size: 19 5/8" x 13 5/8" - 49.8cm x 34.6cm

Medium: Watercolours on paper

Condiiton: Very good. There is no fading or foxing. The mounts and frame are new.