Friedrich Nerly German, 1807-1878

Venice views were as popular in Nerly's time as they are today. Demand for these timeless vistas had begun in the eighteenth century, the age of the Grand Tour, when wealthy young travellers would commission the likes of Canaletto and Guardi to paint panoramic vedute as souvenirs of their travels to Italy. By the middle of the nineteenth century the Grand Tour may have been in decline, but with tourism becoming available to ever growing numbers of the middle classes, so too the demand for city views increased. The present work was no doubt such a commission, its references to Canaletto unmistakable.

Born Friedrich Nehrlich in Erfurt, Nerly moved to Hamburg at an early age following the death of his parents, where he became the protegé and pupil of artist and patron Baron Carl Friedrich von Rumohr. In 1828 Rumohr sponsored Nerly's first trip to Italy, which the young artist chose to adopt as his home. He spent the first six years in Rome, before settling permanently in Venice. He became so assimilated into Venetian culture that he italianised his name from Nehrlich to Nerly. As the principle member of the German colony of artists in Venice, his influence was considerable.