Umberto Zini was born in Padua in 1878 and studied under d’Etorre Tito G. Ciardi and Luigi Nono at the Academy of Padua. He was known as both a portrait and a landscape artist.

A number of his portraits may be found in the municipal buildings of Padua and Venice. For centuries, Venice has been a popular subject for artists, its waterways and crumbling buildings offering an irresistible palette for shimmering reflections and soft shadows.

These facets are lovingly captured by Umberto Zini in this attractive canal scene.