Although the majority of palaces and churches in Venice possess works of art by artists from the city, the authentic temple of Venetian art are what are known as Gallerie dell’Accademia, which can be found in the Campo della Carità, in Dorsoduro.

The museum collection, which provides the visitor with a panoramic tour of Venetian painting from the 14th to 18th centuries, has its origin in 1750, when the Senate of the Republic decided to create the Accademia di Belle Arti, which to start with was under the supervision of Giambattista Piazzeta and later to the authority of Giambattista Tiepolo.

With the turn of the century and the end of the Republic, the institution experienced several changes. One the one hand, it was decided it would house an art gallery to show the fine art students. On the other hand, its collections quickly grew, since it took on the ownership of works that were owned until then by specific convents and churches that Napoleon closed by decree. 

In fact, the current headquarters of the museum occupies three former religious buildings: the Chiesa della Carità, the Convento dei Canonici Lateranesi and the Scuola Santa Maria della Carità. After the relevant reforms, the museum opened to the public in 1817, and new pieces were acquired with time.

The tour around the Gallerie dell’Accademia starts with notable examples of Byzantine and Gothic art, such as the Coronation of the Virgin, by Paolo Veneziano, and then leads us through the glories of the Quattrocento and Cinquecento, represented by names such as Bellini, Carpaccio, Mantegna, Tintoretto and Veronese. 

Of great interest in these rooms is, without doubt, the enigma thrown up to the experts by the canvas by Giorgione called The Tempest.

There are also spaces dedicated to 17th and 18th-century painters, such as Strozzi, Piazzeta, Tiepolo and Rosalba Carriera, as well as rooms focused on landscape painters, where you will be able to see examples of the mastery of Canaletto and Francesco Guardi. Special mention should be made of the Sala dell’Albergo, where practically the only painting by Titian in the museum is to be found, titled Presentation of the Virgin.