Experiencing the Magic of Venice Carnival: An Artist’s Journey

ArtTravel

Visiting Carnival in Venice is the kind of over-the-top, feather-filled spectacle that blows every other life event out of the water. But if you’re an artist, it imprints on your brain so hard you’ll be raving about it for the rest of your days. Cold? Raining? Who cares—I was too busy trying to paint every mask in sight before they ran away.

Veiled woman in purple clothing seated beside a patterned window
Watercolor painting of a seated figure in a flowing purple cloak and white Venetian carnival mask, holding a small dark object, with an ornate latticed window in the background

Half my sketches look like the subjects suddenly remembered they were late for a gondola and bolted mid-brushstroke. By the end, my camera roll was full, my sketchbook was soaked, and I was seriously considering listing “chasing sequins in a downpour” as a new artistic discipline on my resume.

A colorful expressionist painting of three figures in 18th-century Venetian costumes gathered around a table, with a portrait labeled ‘Casanova’ hanging on the wall behind them. The figures wear ornate blue military-style jackets and tricorn hats, and a dish is visible on the table in the foreground
Watercolor painting of a bearded man in a tall red hat and coat beside an easel
A bearded artist in a tall red hat, standing beside an easel.

Later I stumbled across Prendergast’s painting, tried to copy it like a total art thief, and ended up absolutely loving the result. Somehow my “master plan” to fake it turned into me squinting at brushstrokes, muttering about color palettes like a wannabe curator, and realizing I might actually be… into this whole painting thing. By the time I was done, I wasn’t sure if I’d honored the original or committed a stylish crime of passion, but I knew I couldn’t wait to “borrow inspiration” again.

Watercolour painting of a rainy day in a Venetian piazza, with crowds of people carrying colourful umbrellas in red, pink, blue, and orange crossing an arched stone bridge. A tall dark lamp post stands in the foreground, its reflection shimmering on the wet cobblestones below, with loosely rendered historic architecture visible on the right.
after Printergast painting Watercolour painting of a rainy day in a Venetian piazza with crowds of people carrying colourful umbrellas in red, pink, blue, and orange crossing an arched stone bridge.

Love Prindergast’ Venetian paintings Umbrellas in Rain and Bridge. I miss these beautiful colourful dresses and umbrellas. I painted my versions of these paintings.

Watercolour painting after Prentergast, depicting a bustling crowd of elegantly dressed figures crossing a stone arched bridge in Venice, carrying a vibrant array of red, blue, and pink parasols. The scene captures the lively atmosphere of a Venetian street, with figures in period costume ascending and descending the bridge steps, a gas lamp post to the left, and classical architecture in the background.
 the crowded Venetian bridge, the parasol-carrying figures in period costume, the gas lamp, and the architectural backdrop, with a note that it’s painted after Prentergast

Venice is famous for its moody fog, romantic canals, and so many bridges you’ll start to wonder if the streets ever existed at all—or if Google Maps is just playing an elaborate prank on you. It’s the kind of place where you can get lost three times on the way to breakfast and still feel like you’re in a movie set, dodging pigeons in the piazza and pretending you totally meant to end up in a dead-end alleyway. And just when you think it can’t get any more surreal, along comes Venice Carnival, with masked strangers, lavish costumes, and the constant suspicion that the person in the feathered mask might actually recognize you. Have you ever watched or taken part in the Venice Carnival yourself?

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All paintings belong to the author. No image is to be copied without permission.

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