The Souls of Venice
People who have helped shape and been shaped by Venice are considered in five groups: the "mutilated culture heroes" (e.g., the eunuch Narses) who with some great sacrifice helped the city define itself; the "fugitives from splendor" (such as St. Pietro Orseolo or El Greco), so overwhelmed by beauty they fled the city; the "prisoners of Venice--the convicts, the cloistered, the mad; the "symbiotics" in communion with the city for long periods (Titian was one), and the "fugitives from self" (e.g., Igor Stravinsky), who have come from elsewhere seeking a new identity, and who ended up helping to create a new identity for the city itself. More than a collection of biographies, this richly textured and insightful work examines the roots of people's "Venice-ness" as well as the city's own humanity.
|
Common terms and phrases
according Alexandria Alexius Aretino artist beauty became become blind body Bragadin Byzantine art Byzantium cabala Candiano castration century Christ Christian church of San circumcision city's color concrete consecrated Constantinople Crete Cuxa divine doge doge's ducal El Greco emperor Enrico Dandolo eunuch explicit expression figures flaying fled flesh Fondaco Fourth Crusade gambling Ghetto Giovanni Gnosticism Greco Greek hero holy human iconoclasm ikons images imprisonment island Italian Jewish Jews lagoon later light lived Madonna magic Marcantonio Bragadin Mark Mark's Basilica Marsyas mask masses meant medieval metamorphosis Molmenti monastery monk monophysite Muslim Narses painters painting palace Pietro Orseolo potency prisoners prostitutes pseudo-Dionysius pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite punishment reality relics remain Renaissance Rialto Roman Romuald Rustico sacred sacrifice saint Sanudo seemed Serenissima skin slaves spiritual splendor stone Stravinsky symbolic Tarabotti Theotokopoulos tion Titian Toledo Torcello tradition veil Venetian Venetian culture Venice Venice's Veronica Franco vision women