Chiesa di San Sebastian

A hidden treasure of Venetian art in the heart of Dorsoduro, this otherwise stark neighbourhood church was embellished with floor-to-ceiling masterpieces by Paolo Veronese over three decades. Veronese’s horses rear over the frames of the coffered ceiling; the organ doors are covered inside and out with episodes from the life of Christ in vivid Veronese colour; and in Veronese’s Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian near the altar, the bound saint stares down his tormentors amid a Venetian crowd of socialites, turbaned traders and Veronese’s signature frisky spaniel. This last work may have held some personal significance for Veronese. According to popular local legend, Veronese found sanctuary at San Sebastian in 1555 after fleeing murder charges in Verona, and his works here deliver lavish thanks to the parish and an especially brilliant poke in the eye of his accusers. Only work of this magnitude could manage to upstage the superb Titian San Nicolò (St Nicholas), on the right as you enter.