This is one of a series of small studies of Venetian figures and gondolas painted by Carlevaris, the leading view painter in Venice at the beginning of the eighteenth century. They were probably painted in the open air and a number can be connected with his large scale works done in the studio.Carlevaris greatly influenced the younger Canaletto (1697-1768) but he was less successful than Canaletto in transferring the vibrancy of these small sketches to the panoramic finished oils.