Titian to Canaletto: Drawing in Venice
15 October 2015 – 10 January 2016
New research helps trace the history of Venetian drawing over three centuries.
Characterised by brilliant colours and expressive brushwork, the Venetian school of art is primarily thought of in terms of painting; in fact drawing practice from this period has barely been acknowledged at all. Now, thanks to enlightening new research, an exhibition at the Ashmolean seeks to prove that it was an integral part of artistic life in Venice between 1500 and 1750.
Included are over 100 drawings from the Uffizi, the Ashmolean and Christ Church, Oxford, many of which have not been seen since the 1950s. These works were produced at the hands of great Ventian masters – such as Bellini, Titian, Tintoretto, Tiepolo and Canaletto – and provide a revealing insight into the motivations that inspired them to turn to pencil and paper.