Types: Statues
In Venice, statues are indicators of the importance and status of a building. A statue is a sculpture that is not embedded directly in a wall, but is structurally attached to a building in some way. Statues are often found accentuating the roofs of important buildings and churches and add figurative, often human, elements to the building’s architecture, augmenting its overall beauty and visual interest. In Venice, statues are almost always found on buildings of significance, most often churches. Venetian practices did not always permit ostentatious ornamentation, but statues could be used to symbolize the wealth, power, and distinction of certain groups of the population.
Longhena's iconic Baroque church, Santa Maria della Salute in Dorsoduro, is worth noting because of the statues adorning its exterior, including figures of angels and other biblical characters. It is one of the most spectacular examples of this category of external sculpture in Venice. The Salute's collection is representative of the general thematic content of most Venetian statues, which typically feature angels, the Virgin Mary, and other important Christian icons (e.g., the saint of the local parish). Just across the Grand Canal is the Libreria Marciana, the balustrade of which is decorated with many mythological figures that animate the roof of the building. There are 173 statues that are classified as "public art" in Venice, and an additional 11 are found on islands in the Venetian lagoon. One statue, a Madonna with the infant Jesus, was found missing during cataloguing in 2000.
Click here to go to the list of types of public art.