Rosalba Carriera (1673–1757) deserves the title of the most celebrated painter in 18th-century Europe due to her talents as a portraitist of traditional and conservative Venetian aristocracy and, simultaneously, the sophisticated international European world. She interpreted, in an unparalleled manner, the ideals of grace and elegance of an entire era that has entered the collective imagination as the Ancien Régime. European courts sought to secure her services, and yet, despite frequent invitations and generous proposals, except for three stays at the courts of the King of France, the Duke of Modena, and the Emperor in Vienna, she preferred to remain in Venice, where she worked tirelessly throughout her life. In addition to her work in pastel portraiture, Rosalba Carriera was an extraordinary painter of ivory miniatures, in fact, she pioneered this genre, elevating it from a craft to a true art form. Through an innovative technique, the artist succeeded in bringing, for the first time, the loose and vibrant brushwork of canvas painting to the tiny surface of ivory plaques. Her success was immediate. There was no traveler during their stay in Venice who did not aspire to have a miniature portrait by Rosalba Carriera.
Ca’ Rezzonico – Museum of 18th-Century Venice presents, starting from October 13th, an unprecedented retrospective curated by Alberto Craievich dedicated to Rosalba Carriera’s ivory miniatures: 36 rare works of extraordinary originality and delicacy, classics of Rococo art that provide snapshots of a fashionable and gallant society, of which Rosalba has captured the moods, character, and vanities in an unparalleled way.
