Orseolo Gondolas IV: This photo of the series highlights the gondolas' rich detail. The hull glows from the reflected light off the building on one side, and from the sky on the other. Feels ancient and rich and powerful and Byzantine to me, and so very Venice!! The 'water garland' swirling along the sharp hull's edge and 'water ribbons' curving upwards from it soften that strong line and brings one's eye up into the body of the image and back around. Behind San Marco the little canals and streets open out into a rectangular pool just large enough to be a very useful and often bustling gondoliere's station. But it was winter, and it had been overcast and pretty peaceful here at Orseolo Basin. So I could hardly believe my eyes when the sunlight peaked through after the rain, caught this scene and turned it into brilliant liquid color. One even sees the beautiful detailed carving on these exotic boats which are unique in the world to La Serenissima.............Venice - the 'serene one'. I didn't know I'd fall in love with these ancient crafts, but their beauty, and the elegance of the gondolieres pushing them deftly along the narrow 'rios' or canals, is etched in my memory.
