How you can use this image

This image can be used for non-commercial research or private study purposes, and other UK exceptions to copyright permitted to users based in the United Kingdom under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised. Any other type of use will need to be cleared with the rights holder(s).

Review the copyright credit lines that are located underneath the image, as these indicate who manages the copyright (©) within the artwork, and the photographic rights within the image.

The collection that owns the artwork may have more information on their own website about permitted uses and image licensing options.

Review our guidance pages which explain how you can reuse images, how to credit an image and how to find images in the public domain or with a Creative Commons licence available.

Buy a print or image licence

You can purchase this reproduction

If you have any products in your basket we recommend that you complete your purchase from Art UK before you leave our site to avoid losing your purchases.

Order a print

Notes

Add or edit a note on this artwork that only you can see. You can find notes again by going to the ‘Notes’ section of your account.

We have a magnificent view of the Grand Canal in Venice during the annual regatta, which was held on 2 February and attracted large numbers of visitors each year. All eyes are on the one-oared gondolas racing up the middle of the canal. Just right of centre two craft swing around the bend, tilted and almost touching, trying to catch up with the leaders. Another boat follows on the far right. Spectators cheer from windows and balconies, from gondolas and lavishly decorated bissone (eight- or ten-oared boats).Canaletto has captured the drama of the event, with spectators and architecture laid out at a steep angle that recedes sharply into the distance and focuses our eye on the race. The animated crowd and the boats jostling for position help to create a feeling of excitement, while the ripples on the canal's surface, which may look sketchy close up, give the water depth and movement from a distance.

The National Gallery, London

London

Title

A Regatta on the Grand Canal

Date

about 1740

Medium

Oil on canvas

Measurements

H 122.1 x W 182.8 cm

Accession number

NG4454

Acquisition method

bequeathed by Lord Revelstoke, 1929

Work type

Painting

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square, London, Greater London WC2N 5DN England

View venue

Artist or maker

Canaletto

1697–1768

View profile

The Interior of Henry VII's Chapel, Westminster Abbey, London Museum of London
Capriccio: Ruined Bridge with Figures Victoria and Albert Museum
Ruinous Building, Rome University of Aberdeen
Venice: the Bacino di San Marco from San Giorgio Maggiore The Wallace Collection
Venice: the Molo with Santa Maria della Salute The Wallace Collection
Venice: the Riva degli Schiavoni The Wallace Collection
Venice: the Grand Canal from the Palazzo Foscari to the Carità The Wallace Collection
131 more