Art Review: Venice’s Mocenigo Palace, Museum of Textiles, Costumes & Fragrance

I first went to Venice with my parents in the early 1960s. Venetian history, even the Ottoman-sacking kind, and Roman Catholic themes, even the martyring kind, were of no interest to me. As a small child, I found the English kings and queens easier to access. Chivalry one day, off-with-your-head the next was a good storyline, and I understood that English history was closer to my history as an American.

I remember feeding pigeons in St. Mark’s Square, going to the beach, probably in Alberoni on the Lido, and, of course, floating in a gondola. I saw Summertime on TV when we were back home. There, Katharine Hepburn, visiting Venice, falls into a canal. I knew enough about sewers to yawp a loud “yuck.” I knew what lurked in those glistening waters.

About the Author

Brian T. Allen

Brian T. Allen is National Review’s art critic.

I first went to Venice with my parents in the early 1960s. Venetian history, even the Ottoman-sacking kind, and Roman Catholic themes, even the martyring kind, were of no interest to me. As a small child, I found the English kings and queens easier to access. Chivalry one day, off-with-your-head the next was a good storyline, and I understood that English history was closer to my history as an American.

I remember feeding pigeons in St. Mark’s Square, going to the beach, probably in Alberoni on the Lido, and, of course, floating in a gondola. I saw Summertime on TV when we were back home. There, Katharine Hepburn, visiting Venice, falls into a canal. I knew enough about sewers to yawp a loud “yuck.” I knew what lurked in those glistening waters.