Past Exhibition

Venice: Canaletto and His Rivals

Dozens of men with several women and a few children gather in pairs or small groups across a sun-drenched plaza in front of a domed church next to a long, pale pink building in this horizontal painting. The people’s faces and hands we can see have pale, peachy skin. The men wear hats and shin-length capes or jackets over stockings in tones of charcoal gray, olive green, butterscotch yellow, black, and brown. The women wear black capes covering their heads and long, full skirts. The ash-brown plaza has two zones where geometric patterns are picked out in a lighter, oatmeal brown. Three coral-red flagpoles are spaced along the center of the plaza parallel to the two buildings. Each flagpole rests on an olive-green base about a third of the height of the pole. Tables under open umbrellas clustered around the outer two flagpoles display piles of cloth, and a few people gather around the wares. The domed building extends into the scene from the left edge of the painting, and reaches about a third of the way across as it angles away from us. It has a central portal with nested arches, flanked to each side by a pair of slightly smaller, arched portals. Scenes against gold backgrounds appear in the archway of each of the five doors. There is a second level of arches above. The smaller arches to either side are decorated with more scenes of people against gold backgrounds. Four gold horses stand atop the central, lower arch, each with one front and one back hoof raised. The arch behind them is dim, the back side of a stained-glass window. The stone of the arches and front of the building are light brown. The upper arches are lined with pale, slate-gray spires and curling tracery. The three-story pink building sits close by to our right, extending into the distance on the same angle as the church, and as tall as its neighbor. The lowest level is a series of open, pointed arches. The second level is also a row of arches, but more closely spaced. People walk and stand under both covered walkways. The top half of the building has a carnation-pink façade with seven windows evenly spaced across its width. The central window is surrounded by carved stone ornament. Along the right edge of the painting and closer to us than the large buildings is the corner of a two-story building. The lower level is in shadow under a sloping awning, creating a merchant’s stall, and the second level has a rounded, arched window. One person stands at the front corner of the roof and looks down into the square. In the narrow gap between the row of buildings to our left and the smaller structure to our right is a winged lion atop a tall column. Beyond that is sparkling blue water with several masted ships and long, narrow gondolas. The sky above has thin white clouds against a pale blue sky. The artist signed the lower left, “A.C.F.”
Canaletto, The Square of Saint Mark's, Venice, 1742/1744, oil on canvas, Gift of Mrs. Barbara Hutton, 1945.15.3

Details

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  • Locations

    East Building, Upper Level
Dozens of men with several women and a few children gather in pairs or small groups across a sun-drenched plaza in front of a domed church next to a long, pale pink building in this horizontal painting. The people’s faces and hands we can see have pale, peachy skin. The men wear hats and shin-length capes or jackets over stockings in tones of charcoal gray, olive green, butterscotch yellow, black, and brown. The women wear black capes covering their heads and long, full skirts. The ash-brown plaza has two zones where geometric patterns are picked out in a lighter, oatmeal brown. Three coral-red flagpoles are spaced along the center of the plaza parallel to the two buildings. Each flagpole rests on an olive-green base about a third of the height of the pole. Tables under open umbrellas clustered around the outer two flagpoles display piles of cloth, and a few people gather around the wares. The domed building extends into the scene from the left edge of the painting, and reaches about a third of the way across as it angles away from us. It has a central portal with nested arches, flanked to each side by a pair of slightly smaller, arched portals. Scenes against gold backgrounds appear in the archway of each of the five doors. There is a second level of arches above. The smaller arches to either side are decorated with more scenes of people against gold backgrounds. Four gold horses stand atop the central, lower arch, each with one front and one back hoof raised. The arch behind them is dim, the back side of a stained-glass window. The stone of the arches and front of the building are light brown. The upper arches are lined with pale, slate-gray spires and curling tracery. The three-story pink building sits close by to our right, extending into the distance on the same angle as the church, and as tall as its neighbor. The lowest level is a series of open, pointed arches. The second level is also a row of arches, but more closely spaced. People walk and stand under both covered walkways. The top half of the building has a carnation-pink façade with seven windows evenly spaced across its width. The central window is surrounded by carved stone ornament. Along the right edge of the painting and closer to us than the large buildings is the corner of a two-story building. The lower level is in shadow under a sloping awning, creating a merchant’s stall, and the second level has a rounded, arched window. One person stands at the front corner of the roof and looks down into the square. In the narrow gap between the row of buildings to our left and the smaller structure to our right is a winged lion atop a tall column. Beyond that is sparkling blue water with several masted ships and long, narrow gondolas. The sky above has thin white clouds against a pale blue sky. The artist signed the lower left, “A.C.F.”
Canaletto, The Square of Saint Mark's, Venice, 1742/1744, oil on canvas, Gift of Mrs. Barbara Hutton, 1945.15.3

Overview: 20 paintings by Canaletto together with 34 paintings by his contemporaries, including Gaspar Vanvitelli, Luca Carlevarijs, Michele Marieschi, Bernardo Bellotto, and Francesco Guardi, were shown in this exhibition, which explored cityscapes of Venice and the styles and rivalries of the artists. Works on view were from the collection of the National Gallery of Art, and loans from public and private collections in Europe and the United States. 2 historical cameras obscura, on loan from the Museo Correr, Venice, also were shown, together with 3 modern examples to illustrate use of the tool in creating accurate landscape images. A 35-foot-long gondola that once belonged to the American painter Thomas Moran, on loan from the Mariners' Museum, Newport News, Virginia, was shown on the East Building Mezzanine. The exhibition was part of ITALY@150, a series of activities in Washington, DC, and throughout the United States celebrating the 150th anniversary of the unification of Italy.

An audio tour narrated by National Gallery of Art Director Earl A. Powell III was available. Exhibition curator Charles Beddington presented "Introduction to the Exhibition—Canaletto and His Rivals" on February 20. Eric Denker, senior lecturer, National Gallery of Art, spoke on "Canaletto's Venice: The Art of Fiction," on March 13. Denker also presented a five-lecture course, "The Fabric of Venice," exploring the urban environment of the city, in association with the exhibition. Michael Kahn, artistic director, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Washington, D.C., Eric Denker, and Faya Causey, head of the department of academic programs, National Gallery of Art, discussed "Shakespeare's Italy" in a program on May 22. A public symposium, "Sights and Sounds of 18th Century Venice," was presented in association with the exhibition, and a teacher workshop was held on March 5. A 40-minute exhibition film produced by the National Gallery, London, was shown in the East Building auditorium. A 15-minute version of the film was shown within the exhibition. A special menu of Italian dishes by Chef Fabio Trabocchi was available at the Garden Café. Concerts in February and March included works by Vivaldi and other Italian composers. The Venice Baroque Orchestra performed on April 10.

Organization: The exhibition was organized by the National Gallery of Art, Washington, and the National Gallery, London. Canaletto scholar Charles Beddington was curator. David Alan Brown, curator of Italian and Spanish paintings, National Gallery of Art, was coordinator in Washington.

Sponsor: The exhibition was made possible by the Bracco Foundation and through the support of the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation. Additional support was provided by Sally Engelhard Pingree and The Charles Engelhard Foundation. The exhibition was supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

Attendance: 115,726 (100 days)

Catalog: Venice: Canaletto and His Rivals, by Charles Beddington. London: National Gallery Company Limited, 2010.

Other Venues: National Gallery, London, October 13, 2010–January 16, 2011