Florian's Café, Venice

Venice’s St Mark’s Square has long witnessed its visitors sitting in the shadows of the bell tower, enjoying refreshments in the heat of the day. This tradition is referred to as ‘bere un’ombra’, literally ‘drinking a shadow’, and symbolises the conviviality of a truly Venetian lifestyle, embodied in the present work. The distinctive façade of St. Mark’s Cathedral is described in vivid ribbons of colour as elegantly dressed ladies enjoy refreshments outside the iconic Florian's Café. Brilliant summer sunlight illuminates the scene, and flags flutter in the gentle breeze of the lagoon; the present work depicts one of Venice’s most celebrated views.

Named after its proprietor Floriano Francesconi, Florian’s was opened in the building known as the Procuratie Nuove on the Piazza San Marco in 1720 and is said to be the oldest coffee house in continuous operation. Among its eminent customers were Casanova, Goldoni, Goethe, Byron and Proust, and for a long time it was the only coffee house in Venice to allow women. An institution of Venetian decadence, Florian’s was frequented by wealthy tourists and Venetians alike, where a prominent table was at a premium as the women tried to impress the fellow diners with their sartorial finery.

'It was in Venice in 1910 that Cadell’s work took off with confidence, freedom and consistency. The paintings he did there show tremendous, uninhibited vitality.' Tom Hewlett

Cadell’s first trip to Venice was made in 1910 on the encouragement of his patron Patrick Ford who felt that the light and surroundings would be inspirational to the artist’s practice. Indeed, Cadell’s records note an agreement between the pair: ‘Cheque from P.J. Ford Esq.: £150 to go to Venice and paint. He to choose equivalent in pictures on my return.’ (T. Hewlett, Cadell: The Life and works of A Scottish Colourist 1883-1937, London, 1988, p. 27).

‘The effect of Venice on Bunty [Cadell] and his work was dramatic. The combination of the vivid Mediterranean colours with the brilliant sunshine during the day, and the soft warm tones of evening, provided the ideal inspiration for his natural colourist talent. He worked in watercolour and in oil - on large canvases and small panels, trying to capture not only the wide range of colour, but also the atmosphere of the city’ (ibid, p. 28).

It is no surprise that Cadell was attracted to Venice. For centuries artists such as J.M.W. Turner, Claude Monet, J.M. Whistler and Edouard Manet had continue to be inspired by the interplay of light and colour so unique to the city’s picturesque architecture. Although it is unlikely that Cadell saw Manet’s Venetian paintings at first hand, the pair’s painterly expression and chromatic technique hold undeniable similarities. Exemplified in the present work, Cadell here layers swift yet delicate licks of paint punctuated with bold white brushstrokes to create an altogether expressive depiction of his encounters with Venetian society. It was at this time that Cadell’s practice was at its most rhythmic, with paint applied confidently ‘wet on wet’ in a vibrant palette, inspired by the bustling corners of the city and the sun-drenched pinks and purples of its architecture.

There was a distinctly strong British artistic presence in Venice in the years surrounding 1910. In particular, the Scots were particularly well represented. In 1909, J.D. Fergusson, S.J. Peploe, Charles Mackie and Robert Burns were included in the British Pavilion. In the following year, while John Singer Sargent participated in the Biennale, the Scots-Irish painter John Lavery was given a large one-man exhibition. Certainly, this was an exciting time of Mediterranean inspiration for the very best in contemporary British art.

Cadell returned to Edinburgh late in 1910 with a wealth of new work which was exhibited at Aitken and Dott in November that year. At least half a dozen of the pictures painted in Venice were given away as gifts to friends and relations, including St Mark’s Square, Venice which was given to Cadell’s sister Jean Perceval-Clark, and a watercolour of a palazzo that was given to the artist James Paterson.