Until 11 May, the Museo Nacional Thyssen Mornemisza will be presenting for the first time in full in Madrid the collection of works by Francesco Guardi belonging to the Museo Calouste Gulbenkian, thanks to a collaboration agreement between both institutions.
With a total of 18 oils and one drawing, Francesco Guardi is the best represented artist in this collection of over 6,000 pieces of art gathered by the financier Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian (1869-1955), which has been on display at the museum named after him in Lisbon since 1969.
Alongside the paintings by Guardi, acquired between 1907 and 1921, there is a drawing by the same artist, incorporated in 2002, and an oil painting by his son Giacomo. The works date from 1765 to 1791 and illustrate iconic places of Venice, such as the Rialto Bridge or the Doge’s Palace, celebrations like the Ascension, the surroundings of the city and some whims belonging to the end of his career.
After an initial stage in which he mainly worked as a painter of history, religious subjects, frescoes and even still lifes, Guardi began to paint views of his city, following first the precise style of his predecessor Canaletto to then add vitality and illusion to his compositions. After the death of Canaletto in 1768, he became the most important vedutist in Venice. Tickets to see the collection can be purchased at this link.
