Rosalba “prima pittrice de l’Europa”

The aim of the exhibition Rosalba “prima pittrice de l’Europa” is to present her art – she has never been the subject of a one-woman show – to a broad international public and at the same time further knowledge about a long career still full of problematic aspects. The exhibition, organised by Giorgio Cini Foundation Institute of Art History with the practical collaboration of several institutions in Italy and abroad, features pastels, miniatures and drawings from major private and public European museums and collections.
Rosalba Carriera (1673-1757) was the most celebrated Italian artist of her day. Everyone concurred about the excellence of portraits – from English Lords to princes of the empire. For almost half a century all the European courts sought her services. Yet despite the frequent invitations and generous offers, apart from thee brief periods spent in Modena, in Paris and in Vienna, she chose to stay in Venice, where she worked constantly throughout her life. Consequently, her strong link with her Veneto homeland is one of the central topics in the exhibition, especially since Rosalba made some of the most perceptive portraits of leading figures in 18th-century Venetian society. She also made a key contribution to the development of French portrait painting. She was an unsurpassed interpreter of the ideals of grace and elegance in an age when the “happy life” entered the collective imagination and was identified with the ancien régime. Rosalba’s excellence in the artistic field is not the only reason for celebrating her. She was also at the centre of a network of European relations involving sovereigns, members of the aristocracy, connoisseurs and art lovers. All English, French or German-speaking nobles passing through Venice wished to have a portrait made by Rosalba Carriera, or bought some of her miniatures. As far as the miniatures are concerned, the exhibition presents for the first time an extraordinary selection of paintings of great quality, including the morceau de réception sent from the Accademia di San Luca in Rome.
Today, however, Rosalba’s fame with the wider public still mainly rests on her pastels. In her pastels Rosalba takes us to the threshold of interior life. Some of her most emblematic portraits are on show in the exhibition. Her faces are not easily forgotten, such as that of the Prelate of Casa Le Blond (Venice, Accademia). He is permeated by a kind of intelligent thoughtfulness, the lips slightly stretched into a bitter twist in a grey-on-grey portrait that is a masterpiece of chromatic sobriety. But Rosalba Carriera also portrayed herself. She did so several times throughout her career and more often than any other Venetian painter. The series of self-portraits form an impressive sequence, directly illustrating her development towards a more introspective style, increasingly focused on the face, almost seen in isolation. In the first self-portrait, dating from 1708-1709 (courtesy of the Gallery of the Uffizi, Florence) she is smiling with a rose in her hair, while showing a newly painted portrait of her beloved sister Giovanna.

Venice, Palazzo Cini at San Vio
1 September – 28 October

Daily 10.00 – 13.00 15.00 – 18.30, closed Mondays

Admission to the Gallery:
Full 6.50
Reduced 5.50 (Senior over 65 with ID, Students under 26 with ID, Residents of the City of Venice with ID and Venicecard holders)

Guided tours:
Codess Cultura – tel. + 39 041 5240119

Information
Institute of Art History
tel. +39 041 2710230 – fax +39 041 5205842
e-mail: arte@cini.it