Sketching a Venetian panorama - a drawing tutorial by Dan Hogman

"To build a city where it is impossible to build a city is madness in itself, but to build there one of the most elegant and grandest of cities is the madness of genius,” said the famous Russian writer, Alexander Herzen about Venice.

Venice is a marvel one must see to believe. Referred to as Italy’s floating city, its water thoroughfares, mesmerising gondola rides, historic palazzi, and the romance-induced bridges are a sight to behold. A kiss in Venice is a dream of many, a fancy made popular in the 1979 American rom-com, A Little Romance, where the protagonists - an American girl and a French boy - seal their love forever with a kiss beneath the Bridge of Sighs.

It is hard to believe that what comes across as a thriving settlement today is actually a city built on flat, muddy and waterlogged lagoons. As history goes, to evade barbarian conquerors, people in the 421 AD dug hundreds of canals and shored up the banks with wooden pilings to create foundations for buildings. Not many people know that a lot of buildings in Venice still stand on 1000-year old wooden piles.

Venice's magic allures our columnist Dan Hogman too, as he captures a moment of this city extraordinaire in a series of brisk yet meticulously detailed strokes. He brings alive a panoramic view of the Grand Canal, flanking rows of buildings on either side and gondolas populating its waters.The visual speak a million words - it seems eerily still and one could feel a gush of romance filling the air.

Watch this space every Wednesday for more tutorials by Dan Hogman.