I Guardi della Collezione Gulbenkian

Venice, Ca’ Rezzonico – Museum of 18th-century Venice
From 7 March to 8 June 2026

Curated by Alberto Craievich

One of the most renowned groups in the Gulbenkian Museum’s collections is the splendid set of paintings by Francesco Guardi (1712-1793), the last great Venetian painter of views in the 18th century, acquired in the first twenty years of the 20th century. They include some of the most sublime works by the artist, who is famous for having begun painting views in middle age, after years spent experimenting with history and genre painting.

All dating from between 1770 and 1790, Guardi’s works in the Gulbenkian are outstanding examples of his style, with allusive brushstrokes and freely distorted proportions, creating views in which the structure of perspective appears elastic. Now far removed from Canaletto’s geometric certainties and camera obscura, Venice as portrayed by Francesco Guardi is made up of buildings eroded by light, rendered through tremulous brushwork, as if offering an inward image of Venice and its civilisation already in rapid decline. The subjects are those that the artist explored at various times, such as The Feast of the Ascension in St. Mark’s Square, the Regattas on the Grand Canal and the Departure of the Bucintoro.

Thanks to collaboration between the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia and the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, visitors will be able to admire a selection of these paintings by Francesco Guardi in the Portego of Ca’ Rezzonico, together with a set of drawings from the collection of the Cabinet of Drawings and Prints. The dialogue between painting and graphic art will offer insights into the creative achievement of one of the iconic artists of 18th-century Venice.

Opened in 1969, the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum is one of the most important cultural institutions in Lisbon. The original core of its collections consists of the immense collection of the Armenian entrepreneur and philanthropist, naturalised a British citizen, Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian (1869-1955), known for his refined tastes and extensive interests.
The works he acquired over the years bear exceptional witness to his deep passion for art, which ranged from Greek and Roman antiquity to the Italian Renaissance, the European 17th century and the Impressionists, as well as decorative art objects.

The exhibition can be visited according to the museum’s opening hours and admission procedures.