Friedrich Nerlich was born in Erfurt, in central Germany, and after some self-training in art, was encouraged by the art collector and scholar Baron Carl Friedrich von Rumohr (1785-1843) to pursue his talent. The two traveled to Italy in 1828, arriving in Rome. Nerlich lived in the Eternal City for six years, and Italianized his name to Nerly.

While in Rome, he became a leader among the expatriate German community of artists. He moved to Venice in 1835 and remained there for the remainder of his life. He set up a studio on the Palazzo Pisani and began to paint more romantic and atmospheric vedute of his adopted city....