In Venice, from September 23, 2026, to January 11, 2027, Ca’ Rezzonico – Museum of 18th-Century Venice presents *In the Spirit of Venice*. The Alessandro Favaretto Rubelli Donation, an exhibition curated by Alberto Craievich dedicated to the recent donation of works on paper made by Alessandro Favaretto Rubelli to the city of Venice. The exhibition, set up in the portego on the museum’s first floor, brings together 29 drawings by Venetian Old Masters, destined for the Department of Drawings and Prints of the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.
The collection includes works by some of the leading figures in Venetian art history, including Palma the Younger, Luca Carlevarijs, Sebastiano Ricci, Giambattista Tiepolo, and Giovanni Antonio Canal, known as Canaletto. The collection reflects a passion for collecting cultivated by Favaretto Rubelli, a lawyer and Cavaliere del Lavoro, as well as president of the historic Venetian textile company that bears his name. The common thread running through the collection is, with few exceptions,an interest in Venice, its history, and its artists.
In fact, his professional career did not prevent Alessandro Favaretto Rubelli from cultivating his interest in the history and art of the Serenissima. Even during his business trips abroad, the collector amassed a substantial library of antique books dedicated to Venice, including historical works, guidebooks, and illustrated albums. The book collection spans a time period from the late 15th century to the early 20th century.
The drawings on display at Ca’ Rezzonico are organized essentially into two groups. The first consists of a collection of 16th-century sheets, among which the *Christ Tempted by the Devil* by Palma the Younger—one of the most important artists of the late 16th and early 17th centuries—stands out. The drawing is a preparatory study for a lost canvas from the Doge’s Palace and displays a high degree of refinement, allowing viewers to appreciate the artist’s skill in defining forms. The Favaretto Rubelli collection also includes a second drawing by Palma the Younger, depicting *The Prayer of Saint Charles Borromeo* and dated 1624.
The most substantial group, however, is dedicated to 18th-century Venice, featuring works by the leading artists of the final century of the Venetian Republic’s history. Among these are five“Studi di macchiette” by Luca Carlevarijs, all from the collection of Tito Miotti. The small sheets depict common people at work, women engaged in conversation, and men sitting or standing, forming a repertoire of figures destined to appear in the artist’s cityscapes. These drawings thus expand the collection dedicated to Carlevarijs held in Venice’s civic collections, considered among the most important in the world alongside those of the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Sebastiano Ricci is represented by a preparatory black-pencil drawing for The Temptations of Saint Anthony the Abbot. The sheet documents the artist’s process in constructing chiaroscuro through defined lines and vigorous hatching. The collection also includes two studies by Gaspare Diziani, a pupil of Ricci, and an early copy of one of the master’s paintings by Francesco Fontebasso.
Giambattista Tiepolo is also represented by a caricature from the Valmarana album, as indicated by the cut corners of the sheet. The work attests to the artist’s skill as a caricaturist, capable of bringing his characters to life with just a few strokes of ink. Rounding out the 18th-century section are two studies of cityscapes by Giovanni Antonio Canal, known as Canaletto, from an album that once belonged to Italico Brass and was subsequently lost. The two sheets offer insight into the Venetian painter’s working method and enrich the graphic arts collection of the city’s civic museums.
The donation is part of the activities of the Department of Drawings and Prints of the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia, an institution dedicated to the study, conservation, and promotion of historical graphic art. The presentation of the collection at Ca’ Rezzonico also highlights the role of private donations in the formation and expansion of the heritage preserved by public institutions, intended for enjoyment and study by future generations as well.
Alessandro Favaretto Rubelli’s professional career is intertwined with the history of the family business. He joined Rubelli in 1955, at the age of 24, and led its expansion into international markets, opening offices and showrooms in London, Paris, New York, Lyon, and Dubai. During his tenure as president, the company also launched collaborations with internationally renowned artists and ateliers, expanding its production of exclusive fabrics. In 2018, the Rubelli Foundation was established with the goal of promoting and disseminating the company’s cultural, historical, and contemporary heritage. This includes the Historical Archive, a collection of fabric sketches, and a collection of over fifty thousand fabric samples. The donation presented at Ca’ Rezzonico is thus part of a broader commitment to the preservation and transmission of materials linked to Venice’s cultural and artistic history.
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| Venice: The Favaretto Rubelli Donation at Ca’ Rezzonico—29 Drawings by Venetian Masters |
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