Villa Pisani at Stra refers to the monumental, late- Baroque rural palace located along the Brenta Canal (

Riviera del Brenta The Riviera del Brenta is an area of the Metropolitan City of Venice of particular tourist-cultural interest due to the great architectural heritage of the Venetian villas built between the 15th and 18th centuries by the nobles of the Venetian Rep ...

) at Via Doge Pisani 7 near the town of Stra, on the mainland of the

Veneto it, Veneto (man) it, Veneta (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = ...

, northern Italy. This villa is one of the largest examples of Villa Veneta located in the

, the canal linking Venice to Padua. The patrician

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 Venice commissioned a number of villas, also known as ''Villa Pisani'' across the Venetian mainland. The villa and gardens now operate as a national museum, and the site sponsors art exhibitions.

History

Construction of this palace was begun in the early 18th century for Alvise Pisani, the most prominent member of the Pisani family, who was appointed

doge A doge ( , ; plural dogi or doges) was an elected lord and head of state in several Italian city-states, notably Venice and Genoa, during the medieval and renaissance periods. Such states are referred to as " crowned republics". Etymology The ...

in 1735. The initial models of the palace by

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

n architect Girolamo Frigimelica still exist, but the design of the main building was ultimately completed by Francesco Maria Preti. When it was completed, the building had 114 rooms, in honour of its owner, the 114th

Doge of Venice The Doge of Venice ( ; vec, Doxe de Venexia ; it, Doge di Venezia ; all derived from Latin ', "military leader"), sometimes translated as Duke (compare the Italian '), was the chief magistrate and leader of the Republic of Venice between 726 ...

Alvise Pisani. In 1807 it was bought by

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

from the Pisani Family, now in poverty due to great losses in gambling. In 1814 the building became the property of the

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

who transformed the villa into a place of vacation for the European aristocracy of that period. After 1866 the Villa became the property of the House of Savoy, who in 1882 transferred it to the Italian state. In 1934 it was partially restored to host the first meeting of

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

and Benito Mussolini, after the riots in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Architecture

From the outside, the facade of the oversized palace appears to command the site, facing the

Brenta River The Brenta is an Italian river that runs from Trentino to the Adriatic Sea just south of the Venetian lagoon in the Veneto region, in the north-east of Italy. During the Roman era, it was called Medoacus (Ancient Greek: ''Mediochos'', ''Μηδ� ...

some 30 kilometers from Venice. The villa is one of many villas along the canal, which the Venetian noble families and merchants started to build as early as the 15th century. The broad façade is topped with statuary, and presents an exuberantly decorated center entrance with monumental columns shouldered by atlantes (an

atlas An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of maps of Earth or of a region of Earth. Atlases have traditionally been bound into book form, but today many atlases are in multimedia formats. In addition to presenting geograp ...

being a male version of a

caryatid A caryatid ( or or ; grc, Καρυᾶτις, pl. ) is a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural support taking the place of a column or a pillar supporting an entablature on her head. The Greek term ''karyatides'' literally means "ma ...

). It shelters a large complex with two inner courts and acres of gardens, stables, and a garden maze. The largest room is the ballroom, where the 18th-century painter Giovanni Battista Tiepolo frescoed the two-story ceiling with a massive allegorical depiction of the ''Apotheosis'' or ''Glory of the Pisani family'' (painted 1760–1762).Villa Pisani
/ref> Tiepolo's son

Gian Domenico Tiepolo Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo (August 30, 1727March 3, 1804) was an Italian painter and printmaker in etching. He was the son of artist Giovanni Battista Tiepolo and elder brother of Lorenzo Baldissera Tiepolo. Life history Domenico was born in ...

, Crostato,

Jacopo Guarana 225px, ''Allegory of the virtues Mocenigo'', 1787 Jacopo Guarana (October 28, 1720 – April 18, 1808) was a Venetian painter of the late Baroque period who was born in Verona. He was active mainly in Venice and its mainland territories. In ...

Jacopo Amigoni Jacopo Amigoni (ca. 1685 – September 1752), also named Giacomo Amiconi, was an Italian painter of the late- Baroque or Rococo period, who began his career in Venice, but traveled and was prolific throughout Europe, where his sumptuous portrai ...

, P.A. Novelli, and

Gaspare Diziani Gaspare Diziani (1689 – 17 August 1767) was an Italian painter of the late-Baroque or Roccoco period, active mainly in the Veneto but also in Dresden and Munich. The artist's canvas is the largest painting of the Hermitage Museum in St. Peters ...

also completed frescoes for various rooms in the villa. Another room of importance in the villa is now known as the "Napoleon Room" (after his occupant), furnished with pieces from the Napoleonic and Habsburg periods and others from when the house was lived by the Pisani. The ''most riotously splendid'' Tiepolo ceiling would influence his later depiction of the ''Glory of Spain'' for the throne room of the

Royal Palace of Madrid The Royal Palace of Madrid ( es, Palacio Real de Madrid) is the official residence of the Spanish royal family at the city of Madrid, although now used only for state ceremonies. The palace has of floor space and contains 3,418 rooms. It is the ...

; however, the grandeur and bombastic ambitions of the ceiling echo now contrast with the mainly uninhabited shell of a palace. The remainder of its nearly 100 rooms are now empty. The Venetian playwright

Carlo Goldoni Carlo is a given name. It is an Italian form of Charles. It can refer to: * Carlo (name) * Monte Carlo * Carlingford, New South Wales, a suburb in north-west Sydney, New South Wales, Australia *A satirical song written by Dafydd Iwan about Prince ...

described the palace in its day as a place of "great fun, served meals, dance and shows". (Stra) Villa Pisani - Il pozzo nel cortile interno sud-ovest.jpg, The well in the inner courtyard False facade and stables - Villa Pisani (Stra).jpg, False facade and stables Villa Pisani - Il retro della villa con il parco e la piscina.jpg, The reflecting pond VillaPisani.jpg, Facade Pisani IMG 5896.JPG, Statuary at Villa Pisani The Apotheosis of the Pisani Family - G B Tiepolo.jpg, The Apotheosis of the Pisani Family Tiepolo Pisani.JPG, Fresco by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo

Exhibitions

There are often exhibitions of ancient, modern and contemporary art. The halls host 150000 visitors a year. In 2007, the exhibition "I classici del contemporaneo" and "Extradimensionism" by Paolo Aldighieri. In 2008, an important exhibition by Mimmo Paladino. In 2009 "Impressionismo a Venezia, 1879–1933" by Emma Ciardi. In 2011 "Tutto score" by Oliviero Rainaldi.

References

External links

Official site of the Villa Pisani

Giambattista Tiepolo, 1696–1770
a full text exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which includes material on Villa Pisani {{authority control Houses completed in the 18th century Pisani, Stra Gardens in Veneto Italian Baroque gardens Museums in Veneto Historic house museums in Italy National museums of Italy Pisani family Royal residences in Italy

History

Architecture

Exhibitions

See also

References

External links