Adelson, typically, was consumed with things large and small: the precise replication of the Campanile di San Marco and the Bridge of Sighs, the tassels on the curtains, the question of whether it was cheaper to rent or buy cranes (he bought), the color of the canals (he ordered them drained and their surface repainted, for a more perfect blue).

NEWYORKER: The Brass Ring

Meanwhile, the position and lighting of "The Bridge of Sighs" (1903-04) suggests we've never before seen this familiar sight.

WSJ: Fluid, Evanescent Images | John Singer Sargent Watercolors | Brooklyn Museum | By Tom L. Freudenheim