Architect Peter Gluck’s Ode to the Venetian Oarlock

It was 1965. My wife and I were on our honeymoon, and we’d just arrived in Venice. That’s where I first saw this fórcola. Gondoliers have used these sinuous oarlocks for more than seven centuries to steer and propel their boats. This particular one was made in 1965 by a man named Giuseppe Carli, considered one of the modern maestros of the form.