The Palazzo Pisani a Santo Stefano is a large palace located facing

Campo Santo Stefano Campo Santo Stefano is a city square near the Ponte dell'Accademia, in the sestiere of San Marco, Venice, Italy. Buildings around the square * Santo Stefano, Venice *San Vidal, Venice *Palazzo Morosini Gatterburg *Palazzo Loredan *Palazzo Pisani ...

, in an alley near the facade of the church of San Vidal, in the

sestiere of San Marco San Marco is one of the six sestieri of Venice, lying in the heart of the city as the main place of Venice. San Marco also includes the island of San Giorgio Maggiore. Although the district includes Saint Mark's Square, that was never admini ...

, in the city of

Venice, Italy Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The islan ...

. The palace is owned by the city and now houses the

Conservatorio di Musica Benedetto Marcello di Venezia The Conservatorio di Musica Benedetto Marcello di Venezia is a conservatory in Venice, Italy named after composer Benedetto Marcello and established in 1876. History The conservatory was established in 1876 as ''Liceo e Società Musicale Benedet ...

, founded in 1876.

History

The prominent Pisani family decided to move to this site from elsewhere in Venice. While the initial design of the present layout of the palace is attributed to

Jacopo Sansovino Jacopo d'Antonio Sansovino (2 July 1486 – 27 November 1570) was an Italian Renaissance sculptor and architect, best known for his works around the Piazza San Marco in Venice. These are crucial works in the history of Venetian Renaissance archi ...

, the palace was erected in 1614-15, decades after Sansovino's death. The project was commissioned, and likely designed by

Alvise Pisani Alvise Pisani (1 January 1664 in Venice – 17 June 1741 in Venice) was the 114th Doge of Venice, serving from 17 January 1735 until his death. Born as a member of Pisani family, he was a career diplomat prior to his election, serving as Ven ...

, with the help of the architect Bortolo, known as "il Manopola", who served as proto of San Marco. The design was expanded over the succeeding decades, adding another floor. In 1751, a small palace with a facade on the Canal Grande was acquired. In the early 18th century, the architect

Girolamo Frigimelica Gerolamo Frigimelica Roberti (10 January 1653 - 15 November 1732) was an Italian architect, librettist, and poet. Biography Born in Padua to a father who had married into the noble Robert family, thus gaining a title of Count for his son. Gerolamo ...

continued restructuring and expansion, creating towards the Campo one of the most ostentatious private palace facades in the city. The stone and marble facade once gated a small courtyard towards the street.

Description

The entrance portal has statues by Girolamo Campagna, depicting two of the labors of Hercules: ''Slaying the Nemean Lion'' and ''Capturing Cereberus''. In the atrium is a large ship lamp with three windows, ''il fanò'', which was located on the quarterdeck of the galley of Andrea Pisani, once admiral of the Venetian fleet. The wood benches are carved with the coat of arms of the Pisani family, the rampant lions. The interior has two courtyards surrounded by colonnaded loggias. On the

piano nobile The ''piano nobile'' (Italian for "noble floor" or "noble level", also sometimes referred to by the corresponding French term, ''bel étage'') is the principal floor of a palazzo. This floor contains the main reception and bedrooms of the hou ...

, the

portego Portego ("porch" in Venetian dialect) is a characteristic compositional element of the Venetian civil buildings built during the years of the Republic of Venice. The portego is similar to a reception hall but has peculiar features. History The por ...

, or entrance hall spans from the Campo to the Rio del Santissimo, and once displayed portraits of the

Pisani family The House of Pisani is a Venetian patrician family, originating from Pisa, which played an important role in the historic, political and economic events of the Venetian Republic during the period between the 12th and the beginning of the 18th centu ...

. Of the original canvases, only the portraits of Andrea (died 1618) and Alvise (1618–1679) remain. An inventory in 1809 of the other rooms of the palace catalogued 159 paintings, including works by

Titian Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italians, Italian (Republic of Venice, Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school (art), ...

Tintoretto Tintoretto ( , , ; born Jacopo Robusti; late September or early October 1518Bernari and de Vecchi 1970, p. 83.31 May 1594) was an Italian painter identified with the Venetian school. His contemporaries both admired and criticized the speed with ...

Paolo Veronese Paolo Caliari (152819 April 1588), known as Paolo Veronese ( , also , ), was an Italian Renaissance painter based in Venice, known for extremely large history paintings of religion and mythology, such as ''The Wedding at Cana'' (1563) and ''The ...

, and

Palma il Vecchio Palma Vecchio (c. 1480 – 30 July 1528), born Jacopo Palma, also known as Jacopo Negretti, was a Venetian painter of the Italian High Renaissance. He is called Palma Vecchio in English and Palma il Vecchio in Italian ("Palma the Elder") to di ...

. During the 19th century, nearly all the movable artworks, as well as the palace, were sold. The ceiling of the ballroom of the palace once had a large painting by

Antonio Pellegrini Giovanni Antonio Pellegrini (29 April 1675 – 2 November 1741) was one of the leading Venetian history painters of the early 18th century. His style melded the Renaissance style of Paolo Veronese with the Baroque of Pietro da Cortona and L ...

. Between 1897 and 1921 the City of Venice gradually became the sole owner of the building that housed the Liceo Società Musicale Benedetto Marcello, in the wing that faces the second courtyard, until in 1940, the palace was reserved for use exclusive of the Conservatory. The palazetto on the Gran Canal is now a separate boutique hotel.Palazzetto Pisani hotel

References

{{Coord, 45, 26, 10, N, 12, 19, 46, E, source:kolossus-itwiki, display=title Pisani a San Stefano Baroque architecture in Venice Pisani family