Inundation at St Marks 1863 - 1864

Editor: So this watercolor by John William Inchbold is called *Inundation at St. Marks*. It feels so immediate and a bit somber. What story do you think Inchbold is trying to tell? Curator: The flooding becomes a lens through which we can consider Venice's vulnerability and the labor often made invisible. What does it mean for the working class to perpetually clean up after these environmental events, while the architecture, representing power and history, endures? Editor: I never thought about the painting that way, focusing on the people doing the work. Curator: Consider the social and economic implications. The painting inadvertently highlights issues of climate justice and the unequal distribution of environmental burdens. Editor: That's a powerful point. I'll definitely look at art differently now. Curator: Exactly! Art can be a mirror reflecting societal imbalances.