Magnificent Venice - Venice, arts & Europe in the 18th century

Heir to a multisecular tradition, the Venetian civilization shines brightly at the dawn of the eighteenth century, in the field of visual arts (with the painters Piazzetta and Giambattista Tiepolo or Canaletto, the sculptors Corradini and Brustolon ...), decorative arts, religious music and opera (with composers such as Albinoni, Vivaldi ...) or theater (through the innovations of the young Goldoni, the figure of Polichinelle, the carnival ... ).

But because of the fragile political and economic situation of Venice, many painters who, from the 1730s, emigrated to Europe where they contribute to the progress of modernity: Rococo in France and in the Germanic countries, the taste of the vedute in England. At the same time, the myth of Venice, unique in its history, architecture, way of life and festive vitality, is gradually developing.
Great painters still speak: Giambattista Tiepolo and his son Giandomenico or Pietro Longhi. Guardi successfully pursues the fashion of the vedute created by Canaletto.

This catalog presents in a complete way the historical context of eighteenth-century Venice, the artistic developments of the time and its influence on European art, thus making it possible to understand the emergence of the myth.

The exhibition Magnificent Venice is on display at the Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais from September 26th, 2018 to January 21st, 2019.