Description of the attraction
Palazzo Fortuny is an art museum in the San Marco quarter of Venice. Once this palace, built in the Gothic style on the Campo San Benedetto square, belonged to the Pesaro family. Later, according to the idea of one of its owners, Mariano Fortuny, it was turned into an atelier, in which Fortuny himself was engaged in photography, set design, textile design and painting. In 1956, Fortuny's widow, Henrietta Nigrin, transferred the Palazzo to the ownership of the municipality of Venice. Today, it houses a huge collection of objects covering the many fields of activity of Mariano Fortuny, and the museum itself is part of the Foundation for the Civic Museums of Venice.
Painting is represented by about 150 paintings by Fortuny, reflecting different stages of his career as an artist. The central place here is occupied by his "Wagnerian" period, which lasted until 1899. Particularly noteworthy are the captivating portraits of members of his family, and first of all, his wife.
A significant place in Fortuny's work was occupied by experiments with light effects, to which a separate exposition is devoted. The collection of photographs left by Fortuny dates back to the period from 1850 to the Second World War - this is the richest collection of images of historical characters, made in a variety of shooting styles and techniques. Finally, a large place in the legacy of Fortuny is occupied by a collection of costumes, fabrics, various materials, prints and ornaments - he painstakingly studied weaving and fashion history. The artist himself was engaged in the creation of models from the priceless velvet of the Renaissance and a wide variety of exotic materials.
