Trixie Navarre

Venice is renowned for its remarkable art and architecture throughout its many little islands. This city was the former gateway of trade from the East, which created much wealth and power for centuries. From the late 13th century, this trade and commerce helped build the city structure, which is still visible throughout its palaces, architecture, cathedrals, and art museums.

Venice has also produced several Italian Renaissance Venetian Masters, including Titan and Tintoretto. Many of their paintings can be seen throughout the city’s ornate churches and museums. It is a remarkable experience to walk through Venice’s palaces with their elaborate architectural details, containing art works from Masters of the Renaissance era up to the Modern art movement.

There are many things that drive me while traveling, and one of them are museums. I have a wide interest in museums from history, art, architecture, music, design to archaeology- pretty much anything that promotes creativity. Art is life, and Venice has much life.

Exploring Venice allowed me an opportunity to view the art world of the city through its architecture, cathedrals, palaces, and their fine art collections. I found myself immersed in several of the city’s best, which I am personally recommending to you. Enjoy!

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Ca’ d’Oro – Galleria Giorgio Franchitti

The Galleria Giorgio Franchitti is a unique museum inside a splendid palace, Ca’ d’Oro, on the Grand Canal. This 15th-century palace was purchased in a dilapidated state in 1891 by the Baron Griorgio Franchetti, who wanted to restore it to its original layout.

Franchetti traveled extensively through Europe to acquire pieces for his newly obtained palace. He had supervised much of the process, including the installation of the mosaic floor collections, a chapelto of his Mantegna St. Sebastian, as well as designing the inner courtyard mosaic himself. His wish, which was stated in 1916, was to turn his home and collection into a museum. The palace officially was inaugurated as a museum on January 18, 1927.

For museum information – Ca’ d’Oro – Galleria Giorgio Franchitti

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Gallerie Dell’ Accademia

The Gallerie dell’Accademia is considered Venice’s largest museum, and housed in a historic church and monastery complex that dates back to the early 12th-century . Its collection is the most extensive in the world of Venetian Masters from the 13th to the 18th centuries. Major Venetian painters including Giorgione, Titan, Tintoretto, Carpaccio, Veronese and Bellini are displayed here.

In addition to being a fine art museum, the Gallerie dell’Accademia is also an art school that provides educational courses and trainings in the field of culture and art. This institution was also one of the first to study art restoration beginning in 1777 with Pietro Edwards, and eventually it was formalized as a course in 1819.

For more information – Gallerie Dell’ Accademia

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Peggy Guggenheim Collection

The Peggy Guggenheim Collection was a favorite of mine while visiting Venice, I enjoyed everything about it. The collection of modern art was marvelous, as well as its location along the Grand Canal. The museum is housed inside the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, which was an 18th century palace, and the home of American heiress Peggy Guggenheim for three decades. I truly appreciated the entire museum scene- how the renovations made the palazzo look modern and open, that Peggy Guggenheim had lived her for decades, and it is filled with her impressive art collection.

The collections inside are Peggy Guggenheim’s personal art collection, as well as of the former wife of artists Max Ernst, and Solomon Guggenheim’s niece. Peggy Guggenheim started collecting a large amount of artworks in Europe, between 1936 – 1946, as World War II began. Then while in America, Peggy discovered many impressive talents, including Jackson Pollock. Her Palazzo on the Grand Canal has been noted as a well-respected collection, with an impressive selection of modern art.

For my museum blog and additional info – The Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice | Discovering Italy

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Scuola Grande Di San Rocco

The Scuola Grande Di San Rocco is an extraordinary museum in Venice, housed inside an early 16th century building, which was originally built as the home of religious and social conformity. This was one of many in Venice, but the Scuola Grande Di San Rocco is considered the most renowned of them all. It is also the only one of the historic Scuole Grandi to survive.

The scuola is outstanding, the dramatic paintings along the walls and ceilings have been preserved in their original settings. Most impressively, this is the location where Venetian Master painter, Tintoretto, was commissioned to decorate the scuola. He painted some fifty works over a period of 30 years- 1564 to 1594. This is the most extensive collection of his work, with the most famous being scenes of the New and Old Testaments, as well as the monumental Crucifixion.

For more information – Scuola Grande Di San Rocco

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St. Mark’s Museum

When touring the Basilica di San Marco, a visit to St. Mark’s Museum, is a great way to understand more of the cathedral, through architectural details and its art. The museum was established at the end of the 19th century and houses various objects that belong to the church.

Some of the most notable works inside the museum is the Paolo Veneziano “weekday altar-piece” and a mid 14th century painting on wood that illustrates life stories of St. Mark.

For more information – St. Mark’s Museum

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Doge’s Palace

The Doge’s Palace was the residence for the Doge of Venice, the chief magistrate who was the supreme authority of the city during the medieval and renaissance periods. The palace was constructed in 1340 in the Venetian Gothic style, and is considered a significant landmark of the city of Venice. Over the centuries the place had been modified and extended, and had become a museum in 1923 being one of 11 museums that are run by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.

The stunning institutional chambers of Doge’s Palace clearly represent the wealth and power of the Venetians during the time of the Doge. The walls and ceilings of the halls and chambers are intricate masterpieces created by many of the greatest artists of their time: Tintoretto, Veronese, Pisanello, Giovanni Bellini, Carpaccio, and Titian .

There is also an impressive collection of arms and ammunition inside the armory, within Doge’s Palace. There are more than 2000 piece of different ages and different backgrounds that belonged to the Council of 10. The armory was needed for soldiers who guarded the palace, the Doge and others who served the Government of the Republic.

For my Doge’s Palace blog and additional info – Doge’s Palace & the Bridge of Sighs | Discovering Venice, Italy

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Leonardo da Vinci Exhibition

While I was walking the streets of Venice, I came across a sign written in both Italian and English advertising Leonardo da Vinci’s Invention Exhibition. As a da Vinci admirer to his creative and intellectual genius, I stopped where I was and felt an urge to walk in. I figured that I could spare less than an hour of my busy day to view this temporary exhibition of his inventions. I am so glad that I did.

The Leonardo da Vinci exhibition is a temporary installation which follows this “before his time” genius’s path of creativity, innovation and science. His keen inventions that were drafted have been magnificently created, and most of his inventions never were built, until now. Seeing this exhibition was an extraordinary experience for me. I was wondering if the soul of Leonardo was pleased, knowing that his “before his time” drafts had come to life for the world to see.

For more information on current exhibitions – Da Vinci The Exhibition

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Wherever you go, go with all your heart…

– Confucius

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