Venise en fête, de Tiepolo à Guardi at the Musée Cognacq-Jay (until 25 June)

Serenissima! Venice in celebration, from Tiepolo to Guardi   From 25 February to 25 June 2017, the Cognacq-Jay Museum invites you to Venice for a carnival! Curious paradox that the Venice of the eighteenth century: when its political, economic and territorial power has considerably reduced since the Renaissance, it is experiencing a formidable golden age of culture. The City of the Doges, as if to ward off its decline which culminated in its surrender to Napoleon in 1797 after a millennium of independence, multiplies the festivals, celebrations and other spectacles that attract curious and amateurs of the whole of Europe. Far from being pure idle entertainment, these festivities like carnival, participate in a real political and religious staging of Venice. Immortalized by big names, Tiepolo, Guardi, Longhi, they print durably and export throughout Europe the attractions of the city of the Doges. More than forty paintings, engravings and drawings from prestigious French and European collections will be presented to the public to revive, during an exhibition, the splendor depicted by the Serenissima Republic of Venice at the time of the Enlightenment. The route of the exhibition proposes to explore four themes related to the Venetian festivals: Great and small rejoicings. Dance and music occupy a prominent place in Venetian society, both within the aristocracy and among the people. From the city to the stage. The commedia dell'arte experienced an unprecedented rise in Venice in the eighteenth century, especially with theater author Carlo Goldoni. As for the Opera, it enjoys majestic theaters, the most famous of which is the Fenice. Power in show. The secular and sacred institutions of the Serenissima like to invite whole crowds to great festivities crystallizing the image of a powerful and sumptuous Venice. The receptions of foreign princes, especially French, are also the occasion of extraordinary celebrations in Saint Mark's Square or the Grand Canal. At the carnival. What would Venice be without her carnival? Created in the Middle Ages, this colorful and masked festival brings together in the eighteenth century a cosmopolitan crowd that loves both the outdoor fairground attractions and the more discreet entertainment of the Ridotto, the ancestor of the casino.