An Elderly Bishop c. 1750

Giuseppe Angeli made this drawing of ‘An Elderly Bishop’ in 18th century Venice, using chalk on brownish paper. In this period the Venetian Republic was in decline, with its political and economic power diminished by conflict with the Ottoman Empire and other European states. The Church, however, remained an important part of the social and political structure. Venice was known for its religious festivals, processions, and the prominent role of the clergy in public life. Angeli himself was an established figure in the Venetian art world, trained in the studio of the popular history painter, Giovanni Battista Piazzetta and later becoming a member of the Venetian Academy. The image, like many portraits, projects power and authority. Here, this is achieved through the visual codes of dress, and the strong, sculptural treatment of form. To fully understand this drawing, we can use historical resources, from Church records to archival documents relating to the Venetian Academy, to understand more about the image's institutional context. In this way, art history helps us to see the past through the present.