Between
 the fifteenth and early seventeenth centuries, European painting 
underwent a profound transformation as artists increasingly painted on 
canvas instead of wood or walls. Nowhere was more important to this 
shift than Venice, where painters experimented with canvas with 
remarkable creativity and innovation. In Venetian Canvas and the Transformation of Painting (Princeton
 University Press, 2026), Dr. Cleo Nisse investigates why Venetian 
artists adopted canvas and how it revolutionized their art between 1400 
and 1600.  Intertwining approaches from art history and art 
conservation, and
 featuring stunning new photographs that show details as never before, 
the book presents groundbreaking research based on close study of 
Venetian artworks, archival sources, art-making treatises, and early 
modern art criticism. It sheds new light on the materiality of early 
modern canvas, its production and supply, and the influence of climate 
on its use. The book offers fresh interpretations of iconic works and 
important concepts such as pittura di macchia and non finito, and 
demonstrates how canvas contributed to the radical new style of painters
 such as Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese. But above all else, it shows 
how canvas changed the making and meaning of paintings. 

This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose book
 focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty 
negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative 
analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. You can find 
Miranda’s interviews on New Books with Miranda Melcher, wherever you get your podcasts. 
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/art

New Books in Art

Marshall Poe

Cleo Nisse, "Venetian Canvas and the Transformation of Painting" (Princeton UP, 2026)

JUN 26, 202647 MIN
New Books in Art

Cleo Nisse, "Venetian Canvas and the Transformation of Painting" (Princeton UP, 2026)

JUN 26, 202647 MIN

Description

Between the fifteenth and early seventeenth centuries, European painting underwent a profound transformation as artists increasingly painted on canvas instead of wood or walls. Nowhere was more important to this shift than Venice, where painters experimented with canvas with remarkable creativity and innovation. In Venetian Canvas and the Transformation of Painting (Princeton University Press, 2026), Dr. Cleo Nisse investigates why Venetian artists adopted canvas and how it revolutionized their art between 1400 and 1600. Intertwining approaches from art history and art conservation, and featuring stunning new photographs that show details as never before, the book presents groundbreaking research based on close study of Venetian artworks, archival sources, art-making treatises, and early modern art criticism. It sheds new light on the materiality of early modern canvas, its production and supply, and the influence of climate on its use. The book offers fresh interpretations of iconic works and important concepts such as pittura di macchia and non finito, and demonstrates how canvas contributed to the radical new style of painters such as Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese. But above all else, it shows how canvas changed the making and meaning of paintings.  This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. You can find Miranda’s interviews on New Books with Miranda Melcher, wherever you get your podcasts.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/art