Eighteenth century paintings in Verona. Tiepolo, Cignaroli, Rotari. The noblemen of painting.

From 11.26.2011 to 4.9.2012

The splendid ambience of the Palazzo della Gran Guardia in Piazza Bra, Verona will house until next spring the highly anticipated exhibition - 'Eighteenth century paintings in Verona. Tiepolo, Cignaroli, Rotari. The noblemen of painting'.

With its highly valued paintings, the exhibition will offer visitors the opportunity to discover the originality and elegance of 18th century paintings in Verona, which remained independent from the reigning artistic influence of Venice.

Inside the Palazzo della Gran Guardia 150 masterpieces have been assembled from some of the most important European and world museums, such as the Hermitage - St Peterborough, Victoria and Albert - London, the Prado - Madrid, the Uffizi in Florence and many more.

The exhibition focuses, in particular, on the works of two early 18th century renowned Verona born painters who played a decisive role for the establishment of Venice arts in Europe: Giambettino Cignaroli and Pietro Antonio Rotari. Although Cignaroli never ventured beyond the boundaries of Italy, he sent many of his works to the principal European courts, whilst Rotari travelled across the continent working for the service of several sovereigns, and in particular, for the Russian Royal family.

Visitors will also be able to admire enchanting views of the city of Verona, produced by illustrious artists like Bernardo Bellotto, an unrivalled master of light rendering. A place of honour within the exhibition is held by some of Giambattista Tiepolo's paintings, who left behind in this city, many important examples of his work.

One of the most welcomed surprises of the exhibition is perhaps the possibility to admire a marvellous virtual reconstruction of one of Tiepolo’s masterpieces, heavily damaged by the bombings of the Second World War after the blasting of the Castelvecchio bridge: this is the renowned fresco of the ceiling of the hall of Palazzo Canosa depicting the Triumph of Ercole.

The touching portraits, the exquisite mythological and neoclassical scenes, the religious paintings, the allegories and the enchanting landscapes turn this exhibition into a not-to-be-missed event.