Casa di Gardella alle Zattere

Facing the Giudecca Canal along the Fondamenta delle Zattere, this five-story apartment building looks at first glance like it could be centuries old -- irregular windows, balconies, and a stone-and-plaster facade echo the rhythm of Venice's older houses. It was actually built between 1958 and 1962, designed by the architect Ignazio Gardella, and remains one of the rare successful attempts to build genuinely modern architecture inside Venice's historic fabric.

This is a private condominium with people living in it -- the Cicogna building, ordinary flats, no lobby to step into and no interior to see. The facade from the fondamenta is the whole of the public part.

Photographing it means photographing homes, and the balconies are in daily use. From across the quay is both better framing and better manners.

The Zattere is a working promenade rather than a viewpoint: it carries residents, students from the nearby university buildings and people walking to the Giudecca ferries. It is wide enough to stop on without blocking it, which is more than can be said for most of Venice.

Coming to Dorsoduro's southern edge puts a visit somewhere with the capacity to absorb it, unlike the routes between San Marco and the Rialto a few minutes north.

The Casa alle Zattere is a private residential building, and its interior is not open to visitors. Its facade is easily seen while walking the Fondamenta delle Zattere, a long, sunny waterfront promenade facing the Giudecca Canal, a short walk from the Accademia Bridge.