This sublime early 20th-century watercolour by English artist Frank Wasley (1848-1934) depicts the Lagoon near Venice at sundown; it’s distinctly Turneresque. Wasley was a masterful painter of maritime scenes and predominantly known as a watercolourist.Venice appears to hover amid a vaporous horizon, as tinted mists envelop the atmosphere. A near-ethereal glow illuminates several vessels, which are described with post-impressionistic handling. It’s timeless, an amalgamation of Turner’s airy visions and the emerging styles of the early 20th-century pioneers. A suitable celebration of this great City.Born in Peckham, London, Wasley’s early years were rather nomadic, as it appears his family moved often. During an interview with The Artist magazine in 1901, he described being raised in the countryside, which enabled him to “revel in long solitary rambles” and “rejoice in the pageant of Nature''s ever-changing moods”. Inspired by the picturesque scenery around him, he taught himsel...