Giuseppe Zais
1709–1781 · Italian Rococo landscape painter active in Venice
Giuseppe Zais (Forno di Canale, 1709 – Treviso, 1781 or 1784, depending on the source) was an Italian painter of landscapes working mainly in Venice. Born in the Belluno area, he was first influenced by Marco Ricci and later by Francesco Zuccarelli, who helped train him once he moved to Venice. Like Zuccarelli, he specialised in the calm pastoral scenes of the Arcadian school, with ruins, quiet waterways and peasant figures.
He is counted among the leading figures of this Arcadian style. He joined the Venetian Academy of Painting in 1774, and he is best remembered for the frescoes at the Villa Pisani in Stra. According to the account of the abate Lanzi, in his later years he gave himself over to neglect and dissipation and died in poverty at the hospital in Treviso. His legacy lies in his contribution to the Venetian landscape tradition of the eighteenth century.
Works (5)
Painting by Giuseppe Zais showing a landscape of classical ruins dominated by a large arch and several columns. The work belongs to the genre of the architectural capriccio, in which the painter combines monumental remains with vegetation and figures to create imaginary scenes. Without further reference material, the focus is best placed on its composition: the open arch frames the space and draws the eye toward the background.
A seascape showing a squall breaking over the sea and the coast. Zais, a Venetian painter of the eighteenth century, worked in oil on canvas, and the force of sky and water is rendered through contrasts of light and shadow rather than precise detail. It belongs to the marine painting tradition, in which the weather becomes the main subject of the scene.
The painting shows the remains of a vaulted building, with the ruins forming the central subject of the scene. Dated 1730 and executed in oil on canvas, its title points to a fascination with architectural decay, a theme well represented in painting of the period. The record offers no further details about its commission or context, so it is best viewed with some caution.
A landscape in which a stream crosses an open space and several peasants appear dancing, as the title indicates. It is a work by Giuseppe Zais, dated 1730. The available information does not clarify the commission or the circumstances of its making, so it is best viewed mainly as a rural scene with a festive mood.
Where to see the work
- Gallerie dell'Accademia Venice · 4
- Ca' Rezzonico Venice · 1
Curiosities
A British patron
During his Venetian years Zais was a pupil of Joseph Smith, the British consul and patron of young artists. The link with a foreign diplomat shows how much artistic life in Venice depended on private patrons. Thanks to him, the young painter came into contact with the city's artistic circles.
A harsh judgement
The abate Lanzi, who wrote about him a decade after his admission to the Academy, claimed that he failed to keep up the dignity of his art and of himself. According to this account, Zais fell into neglect and dissipation and ended his life as a beggar in the hospital at Treviso. The sources do not agree on his date of death, which is given as either 1781 or 1784.