The story of my oil painting "Mistero" inspired by the Venice carnival
Venice, Italy's dream city, is famous for its interconnected canals, the romantic gondolas that roam these canals, and the Venice Carnival, which lasts for 11 days each year. This beautiful city is already magnificent, but during the Venice Carnival it becomes more impressive and mysterious as everyone walks around in masks and colorful costumes. In this article, I will tell you how I was inspired by the Venice Carnival, one of the most colorful and entertaining festivals in the world.
It is not known exactly when the Venice Carnival began. Still, it is believed that the first carnival was held by the locals to celebrate a victory over the Patriarchate of Aquileia in 1162. It is also thought that the carnival was organized to welcome spring in Pagan culture.
It is also said that patients who survived the black plague epidemic that killed half of the city's population in 1348 wore long dresses and masks to hide their images. Over time these masks became colorful symbols. Long-nosed masks were called plague masks. Even after centuries, I saw that the sadness and dull expression symbolized in the masks has not disappeared even today.
It is also said that the Venetians used masks to hide their identities so that the nobles and lower classes could gather at these parties regardless of class. Don't you think it's interesting?
When Napoleon took control of the city in 1797, he outlawed costumes and entertainment. For this reason, the carnival could not be held for about 200 years. It was started to be celebrated again in 1979 with the thought that it would revive tourism.
Since then, the colorful clothes worn during the carnival and the interesting masks worn to make the city a lively entertainment center have impressed me a lot, and I shared my "mistero" painting, one of my two oil paintings inspired by it.
I hope you liked his story.