Project Description
View Of San Giorgio, Venice 2009
pen and ink with watercolor washes,
from a sketchbook,
15 x 21 inches.
The origins of San Giorgio Maggiore date back to 790, when a first church was built on what was then called the island of the cypresses. In 982, Doge Tribuno Memmo gave the island to the Benedictine monk Giovanni Morosini to found a monastery. When Count Vittorio Cini bought the island in 1951, the monastery was destroyed after almost 150 years of military occupation. In honour of his son Giorgio, he wanted to restore it to its original beauty, to create an international cultural centre and to re-integrate the San Giorgio Maggiore island into the life of Venice.