Gondolier

A gondolier mid-stroke, rendered in color — the dark uniform of the trade against the green-brown of the canal water, the long oar bent against the slow forward motion of the boat. The standing posture is centuries old, worked out for the asymmetric design of the gondola and the city's narrow waterways. A gondolier propels and steers with a single oar from a single point on the boat, using a technique that takes years to master.

Photographed in late September 2016 during my first time in Italy. The gondolier is the visible figure of working Venice; the boat is the object, but the rower is the photograph.