‘More than just the gondolas’

Venice, Italy is most commonly known for its romantic gondola rides, carrying lovesick couples leisurely through the water. However, Norah Myers, a senior majoring in art history, said this charming city is "more than just the gondolas."

Myers is one of approximately 20 students involved in "Venice: Light and Landscape," an exhibition class working in collaboration with the Toledo Museum of Art.

The efforts of the class, along with the museum, are working on an exhibit of a vast array of artwork, the majority of which was created in Venice.

Although there is plenty of cooperation from the museum, students in the class are responsible for the entire exhibit.

The students are split into groups in order to mirror what working for a museum would look like as a team effort. While all students get the opportunity to vote on what artwork goes into the show, more specific groups relate to research and writing, organization, promotions, and education.

In addition, a separate group of five students had the chance to work with an exhibition designer to arrange the works.

An exciting part of the project for Myers was getting a chance to dig through the art that the museum had stored away.

"It's super fun to go through stuff that no one else sees," she said.

She hopes that since the public can now view these inspired works, they can better comprehend how the essence of this "amazing floating island" truly captures the inspiration of its artists.

"Venice is one of the cities that is always in media and movies, but I don't think people understand it as a city and artists' hub," Myers said.

She also anticipates guests will better appreciate the "immense work that goes into [the] city."

The main focus of the exhibit is light and how it interacts with the landscape of Venice.

Myers said the exhibit shows not only multiple facets of the city, but also the unique vision of water and light that this magical city possesses. The notion of being a city on water is fairly exclusive, therefore making the entire exhibit uncommon yet provoking.

The instructors of the exhibition class are Richard Putney, an associate professor of art, and his wife, Carolyn Putney, the head curator at the art museum. Between the two, the couple has traveled to Venice approximately 20 times, and these voyages are what inspired the class.

Most of the work originated in the 18th and 19th centuries. The majority of the artwork revolves around print making, such as engravings and lithographs. However, other pieces include oil paintings, works of glass, masks from the famous carnival festival, an antique chair, and a piece of fabric sold at $400 per square yard.

Also, a watercolor painting can be found that was created by the former director of the museum, George Stevens, for which the Stevens gallery was named.

Found in the Hitchcock gallery, Richard said the exhibit featuring such a unique city is considered to be "very picturesque."

He notes that "most of the work is by very famous Italian artists," including Paul Signac and James McNeill Whistler. Richard hopes that "people will be inspired by what the artists have done."

Separating Venetian works from other forms of artwork is its unique beginning. Michele Sanderson, a senior drawing and art history major, is another student studying under Richard in the exhibition class.

"Venice is interesting because of the conglomeration of so many styles put together," she said.

According to Sanderson, styles that contributed to Venetian art are widely varied. Byzantine, Islamic, Renaissance, and neoclassical can all be found within the frames at the museum in this one exhibit.

Sanderson said Venice is also the city where oil paintings on canvas originated. Considering the vast amounts of water surrounding the buildings, the moisture was too immense for any paintings on the fresco walls to hold. This is where the canvas came into play, now one of the most popular means of expressing artistic mediums.

Sanderson hopes that visitors take away the feeling of Venice and the desire to want to go there after viewing the show.

"You're going to see the mood of Venice," she said.