2023 Christopher H. Browne Venice Drawing Tour

Image: Doge's Palace (Palazzo Ducale) and the Campanile of St. Mark 's Basilica, Venice, Italy | Photo by Didier Descouens | Cropped from original | CC BY-SA 4.0

Widely admired as one of the world’s most romantic and beguiling cities, Venice is also rich in classical architecture. Emerging from the Gothic tradition in the 15th century, architects sought to blend local traditions with the buildings of Roman antiquity to make a highly distinctive form of Venetian Classicism. Through the 16th and 17th centuries, this style achieved elegant simplicity in the work of Pietro Lombardo and Mauro Codussi; classical purity in the work of Michele Sanmicheli, Jacopo Sansovino, and Andrea Palladio; and Baroque maturity in the work of Baldassare Longhena.

In the ICAA’s first Drawing Tour to Venice, we will be looking closely at the work of these architects and how their designs were adapted to different building types such as civic buildings, palaces, and religious institutions. As the city is relatively compact, almost all of the sites being studied are within walking distance of each other, allowing the week to be spent immersed in the enjoyment of drawing.

As well as Venice’s architectural legacy, the tour will also look at how the city has been represented by artists over the centuries, from carefully constructed perspective views by Canaletto to the analytical drawings of Romanesque ornament in John Ruskin’s Stones of Venice.

The course will be led by George Saumarez Smith, Director of ADAM Architecture, and Martin Burns, Architect at Fairfax & Sammons Architects. The Drawing Tour will include instruction in a range of field drawing techniques, with a strong focus on measured drawing, and in a variety of media.

Itinerary

A draft itinerary and materials list for the 2023 Christopher H. Browne Venice Drawing Tour is now available to view here. Please note that there may be changes and updates to this itinerary leading up to the program. For more information about this program, please contact [email protected].

AIA Provider Information

Please click here for additional AIA Continuing Education Provider Information:

Instructional Delivery Method: Live In-Person Learning Program

Program Level: Introductory

Prerequisites: None required

AIA CES Program Approval Expiration Date: February 28, 2026

Provider Number: G193

Provider Statement: The Institute of Classical Architecture & Art is a registered provider of AIA-approved continuing education under Provider Number G193. All registered AIA CES Providers must comply with the AIA Standards for Continuing Education Programs. Any questions or concerns about this provider or this learning program may be sent to AIA CES ([email protected] or (800) AIA 3837, Option 3).

This learning program is registered with AIA CES for continuing professional education. As such, it does not include content that may be deemed or construed to be an approval or endorsement by the AIA of any material of construction or any method or manner of handling, using, distributing, or dealing in any material or product.

AIA continuing education credit has been reviewed and approved by AIA CES. Learners must complete the entire learning program to receive continuing education credit. AIA continuing education Learning Units earned upon completion of this course will be reported to AIA CES for AIA members. Certificates of Completion for both AIA members and non-AIA members are available upon request.

About the Instructors

George Saumarez Smith is one of the leading classical architects of his generation. George’s work has ranged in scale from new country houses and garden buildings to large housing schemes. Much of his inspiration comes from the appreciation and study of historic buildings, combined with a keen interest in the continued use of the techniques of classical design handed down through history. George has written several books on architecture and regularly teaches classicism at schools across Europe and North America. He is also known for producing large scale drawings, a selection of which formed the basis of the exhibition ‘Measure, Draw, Build’, held at the RIBA in October 2017.

Martin Burns graduated from Notre Dame with a Bachelor of Architecture. He works at Fairfax & Sammons Architects in New York. As an ICAA instructor, Martin’s focus is on the development of coursework in analytical and measured drawing. Martin is a painter as well as draftsman, and works as an artist outside of the office.