GRAND PALAIS - MAGNIFICENT VENICE! VENICE ARTS IN THE 18th CENTURY
Address : 3 Avenue du Général Eisenhower, 75008 Paris
Transportation : Metro line 1, 13 Champs-Élysées-Clemanceau Station
Opening Hours : Mon-Sun 10:00-20:00 / Wed 10:00-22:00 (Close on Tuesday) / Close on 18:00 on 24&31 December
Price : 14 euros (10 euros for 16-25 years old; free entry under 16 years old)
Date : 26 September 2018 - 17 January 2019
Grand Palais is situated just opposite of the Petit Palais, next to the Champs-Elysees. Constructed in 1900 for the Universal Exhibition in Paris, nowadays it becomes a public exhibition space for artists and big scale exposition sight.
In the 18 century of Venice, the Venetian civilisation dazzled in the visual and decorative arts, music and opera alike, which amazed the whole Europe at that time and till now. We could just name the painter Piazzetta and Giambattista Tiepolo, the sculptor Corradini and also the composer Nicola Porpora, also the definitely worth-mentioned castrato Farinelli. It was Venice which cultivated the brilliant art scenes in 18the century; simultaneously due to the born of the artiststs Venice deepened its cultural passion and beautiful aesthetics.
The art works had been split into several sections: paintings, sculptures, decorative arts and music. There is also the section about how Venice art imapcted in each European country.
The most stunning part is that they also displaying the architectureal models in scale of the 18 century Venice, including the Palazzo Venier, which had been the Atelier de Domenico Rizzi and now as Fondation Peggy Guggenheim.
You might be familiar with the Carnaval and the mysterious masks when speaking about Venice. The puppet theatre also oringined from the 18 century Venice, the puppet are all made by the handcraft. Unitl now you could still have a tour in the puppet theater when visiting Venice, put yourself in recalling the childhoold tale《The Adventures of Pinocchio》.
The exhibition also presents the work of the 3 most important painters in the 18 century Italy without doubts and they were all born in Venice: Pietro Longhi, Giambattista Tiepolo, and Francesco Guardi. Tiepolo was famous for his ceiling and walls painting, and has been considered as "the greatest decorative painter of eighteenth-century Europe". Longhi was good at paintings of contemporary genre scenes of life. And for Guardi, he produced the religious paintings in his early life and then turned to the urban scenes based in Venice. Although they had definitely different styles of painting but they all infect the arts in their own way, therefore they have been considered the traditional Old Masters of that period.
Fire in the Oil Depot at San Marcuola by Francesco Guardi, depicting the great fire of the riverside houses in Venice. Now this painting is collected in Munich Alte Pinakothek, Germany.
When you are too exhausted to continue focusing on the exhibition, you could just take a pause in the service core which refers to the spacious, extensive spiral staircase, enjoying the tranquilness of Grand Palais.
The French scenagraphist and stage designer Macha Makeieff, designed a special space that tells a lively tale of this dazzling Venice and weave a journey of sensations and surprises: echoes of music, dance and drama and regular late-night events for visitors back time in the 18 century Venice lagoon. Please check the Grand Palais webiste for the further programs of details.
Written and Photographed by : Che Fen OU YANG
Translated by : Che Fen OU YANG