Venice: Canaletto and His Rivals Leah Kharibian

View-painting in eighteenth-century Venice began with the emergence of Luca Carlevarijs and ended with the death of Francesco Guardi in 1793, followed by Napoleon's invasion and the fall of the Venetian Republic in 1797. In between, a constellation of remarkable painters captured the city in dazzling pictures which are among the greatest achievements in eighteenth-century art. Canaletto may be the artist popularly associated with Venice, but he had many rivals who competed for commissions, often from foreigners whose patronage was to determine the later course of Venetian viewpainting. All the major figures are represented here - Bellotto, Carlevarijs, Guardi, Joli, Marieschi and Vanvitelli - together with fascinating contemporaries such as Cimaroli and Tironi. This title was published to accompany the exhibition at the National Gallery, London, 13 October 2010 - 16 January 2011 and at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, 20 February - 30 May 2011.