VIENNA.- In the 18th century, painted cityscapes (in Italian vedute: “views”) became much sought-after souvenirs. Particularly so among young British aristocrats who bought these paintings on their so-called “Grand Tour,” an educational journey across Europe, as a sign of their newly acquired worldly finesse and as a keepsake of their travel experiences.

Two of the most eminent exponents of veduta painting are in the center of the new exhibition at the Kunsthistorisches Museum. The Venetian painters Giovanni Antonio Canal, called Canaletto (1697–1768), and his nephew and pupil Bernardo Bellotto (1721–1780) have continued to inform our imagination of several European cities to this day. With their delicate feel for light, atmosphere, and architectural precision, Canaletto and Bellotto transformed these places into stages on which everyday life played out—and in the views of them, into places of longing.

“Canaletto’s and Bellotto’s works show Europe as a space of cultural encounter, long before the concept of a European public ever gained currency. Their vedute connect cities such as Venice, Dresden, London, and Vienna through the perspective of 18th- century travelers and collectors. The exhibition illustrates how art became the visual language of a shared European experiential environment—an empowering culture of exchange, inspiration, and curiosity about other cities and societies,” says Jonathan Fine, Director General of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.

In the 1730s, Canaletto’s vedute fetched record prices in Venice. With the outbreak of the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748), however, the market slumped: international travel came to a halt, and deep-pocketed patrons stayed away. Uncle and nephew first responded by turning to new subject matter in their work, but soon realized that prospects for their careers were better outside Italy.

The exhibition starts out in Venice and then moves on to Canaletto’s time in England as well as to Bellotto’s places of work in Vienna and Dresden, with the main focus on exploring the veduta as a painterly genre.

“City views from the 18th century, which are often perceived as immediate, almost photographic depictions of reality, are in fact carefully constructed pictorial creations that afford telltale insights into the social and political contexts of the time they were created,” adds Mateusz Mayer, curator of the exhibition.

Canaletto’s and Bellotto’s paintings unfold a multifaceted panorama of the Europe of their time. By showing a selection of particularly significant works and placing them within the scientific currents of the period, the exhibition demonstrates that the veduta is not an objective documentation. Rather, it is a deliberately designed image of a city—informed by artistic choices, socio-political conditions, and the expectations of the patrons commissioning them— manifesting a concept that is particularly relevant in light of present-day debates about visual media, urban development, and the cultural memory.

Canaletto—one name, two artists

The name of “Canaletto” has come to be almost synonymous with the “veduta” genre, and not infrequently has caused some confusion, as Bernardo Bellotto also added “called Canaletto” to his signature in some works. He did this not only to underscore his artistic connection with his famous relative and teacher, but also to bolster up his own market value. In this exhibition, though, only the uncle is referred to as “Canaletto.” While the latter, throughout his lifetime, led the precarious existence of a freelance veduta painter, dependent on a changing clientele of patrons, Bellotto was eventually granted the honor of a permanent position at the court of the Elector of Saxony and King of Poland.

High-caliber loans

The exhibition features 32 outstanding paintings—comprising works from the Kunsthistorisches Museum as well as high-caliber loans. One of the highlights is Canaletto’s spectacular view Venice: The Bacino di San Marco from San Giorgio Maggiore (1735/44) from the holdings of the Wallace Collection. The son of a stage painter, he was familiar with perspective construction and geometry as they were employed in the theater. That theatrical quality becomes particularly evident in this painting in his subtle handling of spatial illusion.

Also of unique quality are Canaletto’s London paintings, such as London: The Thames on Lord Mayor’s Day (c. 1748) from the Lobkowicz Collection and Westminster Abbey with a Procession of the Knights of the Order of the Bath (1749) from the collection of the Dean and Chapter of Westminster. On view for the general public in Austria for the first time here, they afford rare insights into Canaletto’s artistic engagement with the English capital city.

Another main emphasis is on Bellotto’s two-year stay in Vienna, an extremely productive creative period. His large-size views of Vienna’s inner city, such as View of Vienna from the Belvedere (1759/60), and of palaces around the city from the holdings of the Kunsthistorisches Museum have been cleaned especially for the exhibition. Complemented by prominent loans from the collection of the Princes of Liechtenstein, such as The Liechtenstein Garden Palace in Vienna, Seen from the Belvedere (1759/60), these vedute can now be presented together, almost in their entirety, for the first time in more than 20 years.

In order to further elucidate the intellectual and artistic context of the epoch, the show is supplemented with additional paintings, art prints, and scientific instruments on loan from numerous European museums. Lenders include: Academy of Fine Arts Vienna; ALBERTINA, Vienna; Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation supported by Tate, UK; Compton Verney, UK; Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia, Museo Correr, Venice; Gallerie dell’Accademia, Venice; Royal Castle in Warsaw – Museum; Leica Microsystems GmbH; LIECHTENSTEIN. The Princely Collections, Vaduz–Vienna; Musée des Beaux-Arts et d’Archéologie, Troyes; Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid; Museu National d’Art de Catalunya, Barcelona; National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin; Nationalmuseum, Stockholm; Austrian National Library, Vienna; Saxon State Archives, Central State Archives Dresden; Schottenstift, Vienna; Vienna Museum of Science and Technology; The British Museum, London; The Dean and Chapter of Westminster, London; The Lobkowicz Collections, Lobkowicz Palace, Prague Castle, Czech Republic; The Wallace Collection, London; Wien Museum, Vienna.

The exhibition was curated by Mateusz Mayer, curator of the Picture Gallery of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.

Serenella Zoppolat (architettura21) and Tilo Perkmann (Artvis) did the exhibition design.

A richly illustrated bilingual publication (German and English) has come out with Hirmer Publishers, inviting in-depth study of Canaletto & Bellotto.

Young visitors will be able to explore the world of Canaletto and Bellotto with the help of a free booklet (German language only) and special child-appropriate wall texts (in German and English). In the last room of the show, two multimedia stations will complete the offer for children, facilitating playful engagement with select subjects. Another multimedia station is designed for use by adult visitors.

A video on the exhibition is in the making and will be accessible on the YouTube channel of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.